Enough is Enough
by walker-of-the-shadow-path
Summary: Harry has had enough of being everyone elses pawn...and so have his friends. Its time they took their futures into their own hands. Post OotP Sixth Year fic, not quite HBP compliant. WARNING not particularly fastpaced, yet! :
1. Growing Up

_Author Note: This is my first real shot at fanfiction, I've only ever written a Mirror of Maybe cookie before this so feel free to point out (preferably politely!) any ways I can improve this - I don't expect my work to be perfect or any readers I may get to think so. I can cope with constructive criticism. This is a WiP and though I do intend to finish it one day and have a (very, very vague) idea of where the plot is headed I make no promises as to how quickly and easily I can post. Reader input will always be appreciated as it may help spark off ideas of what will happen next. _

_Spoilers: all books, including OotP_

_Disclaimer: I own Harry Potter. Looks at the threatening lawyers Yes I do- look over there, on that shelf, Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets…alright fine - I am not doing this for profit and anything you recognise from the books does not belong to me glares at lawyers even if the books do._

**Prologue: Growing Up**

Harry Potter was _not_ in a particularly good mood. Not that he had had any particular reason to be in a good mood since the end of his last term. His chest tightened momentarily at the thought of his Godfather but he determinedly pushed it back. He missed Sirius. Missed him so much that it hurt. Sirius had been the only adult in his life who had, well, _belonged_ to him.

His parents? A few photos and their last words didn't really make for much of a relationship. He loved them, and missed them, and wanted to make them proud, of course he did, but he'd never really had the time to get to know them, to learn to depend on them. It just wasn't the same as losing Sirius. The only things he knew about his parents were second-hand memories, and not even all of those were good. Look at Snape's pensieve! It was still hard to believe his father had been such a prat. Sirius had been a bit of a prat too, but he had his own memories, good ones, to balance those out.

The Dursleys? Yeah right. The Weasleys? Wonderful though they were to him, and he did feel they looked on him as an extra son, they weren't _his_. They were Ron's, and Ginny's, and the Twins and the others but not his. He would feel awkward talking to his best mates parents about his worries and his feelings. He cringed just thinking about what Mrs Weasley would do, he still remembered her reaction to the Prophet in fourth year. No, they couldn't understand him the way Sirius had; he couldn't turn to them the way he turned, well, used to turn, to Sirius.

He remembered thinking his Godfather would take him from the Dursley's, remembered writing to him about his scar because he could trust him, because he'd know what to do, remembered his advice during the Triwizard Tournament - the man had lived on rats for Merlin's sake! Just to be near him, to reassure him, despite the fact that he was a wanted man and it was dangerous. He had _been there_ for him, in a way no one else ever had.

Sirius had always made him feel safer, stronger, better. Having someone he could rely on so totally had been wonderful beyond words. He literally ached at the loss of those feelings. Sirius's loss had left a gaping great hole in his life.

It still hurt to think that he was partly responsible for his death. He glared at the wall, not _totally_ responsible for it, no, not by a long shot. A definite portion of the blame lay at Snape and Dumbledore's feet. He hated Bellatrix Lestrange, and Voldemort, for robbing him of his godfather but he burned inside thinking that his teachers, people he was supposed to trust, people who were supposed to know better, could have done so much more to stop it ever happening.

If only the Headmaster had explained, not even all of it but maybe just a little bit, about how Voldemort might try and send him dreams. Then he could have ignored the corridor, known that it was dangerous. He wouldn't even have had to know about the prophecy, he'd have been satisfied if they'd given him some clue about the fact that Voldie was working to _lure_ him to the Department of Mysteries, by whatever means necessary. If they'd only explained the reasons behind the occlumency, told him there was a chance he could be sent false visions, it might have all have turned out differently.

If only the Headmaster hadn't avoided him all last year, never even _looking_ at him for Merlin's sake! It would have been so much easier to trust in him, to go to him, to confide in him if only he hadn't pushed him away. He snorted slightly at that thought. Dumbledore wasn't the only person pushing people away last year.

He'd tried to push away Ron, Hermione, the Weasley's, even Sirius to some extent. He smiled softly, sadly. They'd pushed back, fighting for him and that thought game him a warm glow that even the fact that he hadn't had a chance to really make it up to Sirius, and now never would, could banish. They all thought he was worth fighting for. He remembered something from his Muggle primary school, a poem or something, about measuring a mans worth by his friends. Despite everything that had happened in his life he couldn't really be too worthless, not with friends like his.

No matter what happened last year they'd been there for him. If they could follow him in rebelling against the Ministry, and the school to a certain extent, despite the trouble they would face in doing so, if they could see him through the Department of Mysteries, despite all the dangers, and if they could even put up with his outbursts of teenage angst then they had to count as the best friends he could ever have asked for.

Teenage angst. Harry smiled remembering Hermione's lecture on the subject, how _'everyone goes through it you know, even people who had perfectly** happy** childhoods and **don't** have Dark Lords after them so don't be such a **prat** about it Harry James Potter!'_ She'd been spending too much time with Ron; 'Prat' was his favourite epithet as well. He imagined Hermione suddenly spouting forth about the Chudley Cannons, or calling Snape a Greasy Git, or moaning about having _'too much bloody homework'_ and then broke into a grin. Nah, even his imagination couldn't hold that one up.

Thoughts of Snape brought his mind full circle; Snape had certainly not been much help last year. Sirius had been dying to get out of that house and Snape's taunting had definitely not helped. After seeing what he'd seen in the pensieve Harry really couldn't blame him too much for that. Sirius hadn'tbeen that much better when it came to Snape. You'd need a silencing spell on the pair of them to try and keep them from insulting and goading each other. They were even worse than he'd be if he was locked in the Dursley's house with Malfoy for company over the summer. He shuddered at the thought. However, Occlumency was another matter.

Although he took some of the blame for the Occlumency disaster he still held to the fact that if, for example, Lupin had been teaching him then he was damn sure he'd have gotten a lot farther than he did. Snape was too busy revelling in tormenting him, in being able to rummage around in his head to bother with trying to explain anything or tell him how to do any of it. Sweet Circe, why couldn't the man grow up? He wasn't bloody James Potter and he never had been but Snape was so wrapped up in his stupid schoolboy quarrels that he refused to see. The bastard enjoyed watching him suffer.

He had even less instruction in occlumency, despite how important it was, not just to him but to the war as a whole, than he got in Potions and that was saying something. How would Snape have liked it if he was taught something that way? Harry's mind wandered.

'_A television Snape, surely even **you** know what one of those is. No? I would have thought someone like you, someone who likes to swoop around and demonstrate how very much more he knows than the rest of us would recognise a simple thing like this. Of course, you never seem to realise that pitting a fully trained Potions Master against a bunch of eleven year olds isn't really much of a victory. Still, I don't suppose you'd get any otherwise, for all your supposed superiority. You're hardly anything special, after all. _

_A television, Professor Snape, transmits images comprising of light and sound. No, it isn't like a wizarding portrait Snape. My word, even considering you were raised in a pure-blooded Wizarding family and have never had **anything** to do with Muggle technology your stupidity knows no bounds. Well, turn it on. What do you mean how? Turn it on,** now **Professor. _

_Well, isn't this a dismal failure. Not that I'm in the least surprised. You may have some talent in Potions, Snape, and the Headmaster may make allowances for your behaviour but don't think that I will excuse your shoddy work here. We'll try it again NOW. **TURN ON THE TELEVISION! TURN ON THE TELEVISION! **This is the simplest thing I am going to teach you Snape, Muggle **babies** are capable of doing this. If you can't master the basics like this, how are you going to cope with changing the channel? Or the volume? I am supposed to be teaching you to use **simple, everyday** muggle technology. I can hardly wait to see the mess you make trying to set the video recorder. _

_Oh get out of my sight you pathetic little cretin. Practice turning the television on and off…what do you mean you don't know **how** to turn it on and off? smirks Well then, you'd better figure it out hadn't you? _

_I heard that, Professor, 10 points from Slytherin. It isn't for someone like **you **sneer to question why you have to learn to operate a television. I am giving up my valuable time in an attempt to force some knowledge into that regrettably empty head of yours and so you will learn. Or else.'_

Harry snorted; he'd pay good galleons to see something like that.

Snape just couldn't see past the fact that he was his fathers son. It didn't matter that he had been raised a muggle, and then thrown into the deep end so far as wizarding society was concerned. Even then Occlumency was supposed to be a pretty obscure branch of magic - after all Hermione hadn't found anything on it in the library and if there had been anything in there then she would have found it. How was he supposed to know what he was doing unless he was actually told? That's what teachers are supposed to do, after all, **teach!** _Not_ just expect you to already know everything.

He'd known he had to clear his mind, but not how. He'd known he had to be able to defend himself from people attacking his mind, but not how. He knew he was supposed to stop Snape reading his memories but how the hell was he supposed to manage that? The greasy git had never given him even the hint of a clue. You'd think being able to resist Imperius would have given him an edge but it hadn't. Not that he'd tried all that hard. And look how it had all turned out: Sirius dead and himself hurting so badly sometimes that all he wanted to do was lie there and scream that it wasn't fair.

If Dumbledore had only explained _why_ he had to learn, what could happen if he didn't, if Snape had actually _explained _Occlumency, been a better teacher, if his own infernal curiosity hadn't gotten the better of him with the Pensieve, if he hadn't been so moody over everything, over life, then he would have opened his present and found Sirius' mirror…there were a lot of ifs. An awful lot of ifs. Of course he wouldn't have been so moody if people hadn't excluded him from so much. Or he could have gotten in a bad mood over something else and forgotten about it anyways, he amended honestly. After all it hadn't taken much to set him off last year.

He remembered Ron saying how he knew he'd been a bit of a jealous prat and had hurt him before but he was working on it. Well he was working on not being so much of a…what was he? Irresponsible? Withdrawn? He settled for moody. He wasn't going to be such a moody prat. Not next year. He wasn't going to be so withdrawn or irresponsible either. He smiled at the thought that, of his two best friends, one was so outgoing and sociable and the other so responsible. They'd certainly keep him on the straight and narrow as far as that went but his moodiness? He was going to have to tackle his tendency to blow up at people and lash out pretty much by himself.

He didn't want to have his friends put up with him acting like a git again. Though in an odd way it had brought them closer, or maybe overcoming it had. He felt they understood him better, understood the demons driving him a little better now. After all, Ron had nearly lost his Father, had had a taste of the responsibilities that came from the fame with being the hinge pin of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. He'd even been a prefect. He'd seen how people could turn on you for what they thought you were, his brother Percy for one, and Harry was still incredibly proud of the way his friend had handled that.

As for Hermione, in a way she'd already known more about his problems than Ron. She'd had to face the rubbish about her in the Prophet the year before, and the mass of owls that resulted in, she'd seen how even Mrs Weasley could be swayed by public opinion and distorted facts. Even so she'd still changed last year. She'd been forced to recognise that authority didn't always work towards the greater good - he thought the ministries actions against Hagrid, what had happened to McGonnagal and even Trelawney, let alone the headmaster, had severely shaken her trust in institutions.

After all you could pass over Quirrell and the pretend Moody as one-off accidents, how was anyone supposed to know that one had come back from holiday with an unusual hair ornament and the other was an impostor? He'd been a bloody good impostor. If things had worked out differently then he wouldn't have minded having him again as DADA teacher. And as for Lockhart, everyone thought he'd done so much against the Dark Arts that you couldn't really blame them for putting the idiot in charge of lessons on the subject.

But the way the Ministry had covered things up and distorted things, and tried to shift the blame, no, she definitely wasn't going to trust so easily again. She had even admitted that things would have gone a lot better last year if they'd only had more idea about what was going on. She'd become a lot less rigid, less rule bound, more open to the unorthodox, like the DA, reasoning that sometimes you had to do things that were considered wrong because, truthfully, they were the only right things to do.

Then they'd both been at the Department of Mysteries, both faced the Death Eaters, both felt the pain they could inflict, seen how much they enjoyed it. Both had felt the weight of other peoples lives on their shoulders and both had seen what could happen if they weren't quite good enough, fast enough, skilled enough, whatever. Both had lost someone who, even if they hadn't been as close to him as Harry had, was still someone they cared about. Both had had to face the what ifs? What if we'd done something differently? Studied more? Practised more? Endless ifs.

And they'd both seen that even when Dumbledore and the teachers and the aurors came charging in to the rescue it didn't automatically make everything alright. They could make mistakes too. Things could still go wrong. In a way they'd all been such children up till then, trusting that once the adults they trusted got there then it would all be okay, that nothing would go wrong. But that's not how wars work. You lose people you love. You can get hurt. You could die. Harry didn't think they'd ever really be children again.

TBC…

_AN: so what did you think? It's a bit of a stream of consciousness this chapter but I wanted to set the story up. Well, thanks for reading, please let me know what you thought since, like I said this is my first attempt. Cheers _


	2. Dursley Life

_Authors Note: Thanks to the wonderful Paq, who was my first reviewer, and also the only reviewer I didn't know since the only other person to review was my sister (love you!) Anyway, I'm glad you both enjoyed it. _

_Spoilers: All 5 books_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. smirks evilly but I do own JKR, bought her last week. cracks whip Write, damn you, write!_

**Chapter One: Dursley Life**

'Boy!' Uncle Vernon shouted up the stairs. 'It's about time you got started on dinner!'

Harry smiled. While Uncle Vernon was never likely to treat him as a true member of the family he was certainly treating him better than he ever had before. Harry felt fairly sure he had Moody to thank for that. Professor Lupin might be a werewolf but he looked like a mild mannered librarian, he really wasn't very intimidating unless he got really, really angry. Or it was the full moon.

Mr Weasley, well, much as he loved Ron's dad he really wasn't all that scary. Mrs Weasley was the scary one. And as for Tonks! His Uncle still thought she was_ 'one of those good-for-nothing teenage punks…always knew there was something freaky about them, wouldn't be surprised if they were all your sort!'_ And after she'd tripped over her own feet at the station it wasn't hard to see why he wouldn't automatically associate Tonks with the sort of elite law enforcement that the Aurors were. Even if he'd known what aurors were. Harry sometimes had a hard time believing it himself.

No, it was mostly down to Moody. He was definitely intimidating. And with his magical eye, he bore absolutely no resemblance to '_normal_' people. The Dursley's definitely didn't want him turning up on their doorstep. The others they might be able to explain away but not Moody.

He laid down the book he had been reading with a smile. The Dursley's still had him doing chores since it was _'only right that the fr…boy pulled his weight around the house'_ but they weren't nearly so long, nor as hard as they had been in previous years. No long list of tasks impossible to complete which would then lead to a punishment for failing. No, now, even though he was still lumped with most of the work, they took care not to work him so hard that he might be tempted to complain to the Order.

He didn't mind. He'd always enjoyed cooking, and he had found that the physical jobs gave him purpose, left him no time to brood. It wasn't as though he could practice his Quidditch for exercise, not in Little Whinging. And no matter how intimidated the Dursley's might be they certainly weren't about to fork out any money for their freak nephew to go swimming or to the gym or anything. He could have fixed Dudley's old bike but then Dudley would have wanted it back so why waste the effort?

They weren't about to take him anywhere if they could get away with it either, not that Harry was terribly interested in places the Dursley's liked, he was sure they weren't a patch on places like Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade. And he'd given his word, even though he didn't particularly like it, to stick close to Privet Drive.

He preferred to fill his days rather than just sit and brood about things he couldn't change. Keeping busy left him tired at the end of the day and meant he was sleeping better than he had done for a while. It gave him something to focus on when he needed it and at other times the repetitious tasks left his mind free to concentrate on more important things. Like Occlumency. He smiled at the thought that he had Aunt Petunia to thank for that.

He had taken to doing a quick once over of the sitting room every morning, a quick dust and tidy up meant he didn't have to spend hours on it when there was company coming. And it was a quiet, undemanding job that wouldn't annoy his aunt while she watched daytime TV. Honestly, the woman spent nearly as much time watching daytime TV and soaps as she did gossiping with the neighbours. Still, he supposed it gave them something to talk about.

A few weeks ago there had been a_ 'Summer Relaxation'_ slot on the show, with various people giving little talks or demonstrations on Aromatherapy (he thought that Neville might be interested in that), Tai Chi, Massage and, most importantly to Harry's point of view, Meditation. His ears had pricked up when he heard the woman talk about _'clearing your mind from the stress of everyday life.'_

He had watched attentively as she demonstrated breathing patterns and how it helped to _'free your mind and soul from its burdens.'_ He had been intrigued. She hadn't talked about building mental walls or shielding against mental attacks but then why would a muggle need to? He'd decided to pull a Hermione and head straight for the library.

There had been a surprising amount to choose from. He wasn't too sure about the one which talked about building a 'safe space,' and he hadn't even tried finding a 'power animal' (and wasn't sure if he ever would) but the exercises in clearing the mind were _fantastic!_ It had taken him a few weeks to get the hang of them but he had been determined to manage it so every day, before he got up and before he went to sleep he had practiced.

Once he had started to grasp it he began to try clearing his mind while he pulled weeds, since the repetitious action didn't require a lot of thought. If he was in his room he'd try to meditate for ten minutes before starting on his homework. It really had helped. If Snape had only told him about this, well, he probably wouldn't have actually done it but at least he'd have had a better idea of how to go about Occlumency.

He had written to Hermione asking if she knew of any Muggle books that would help with shielding the mind. Dumbledore had realised at the end of term that it would be practically impossible to stop all his mail so had had to settle for telling Harry that any letter originating from the Order HQ would be carefully vetted. It was annoying to think that at least one of his teachers, or maybe even an unfamiliar member of the Order, had already read his friends letters to make sure they didn't spill any secrets but it was still far better than it had been last year.

Shockingly Hermione hadn't had a list of books, with chapter references, to give him but had suggested looking at anything on Psychic ability. Apparently her Mum had read some romance novels about a psychic detective who had to shield her mind to stop the murderer finding her. Harry had been a little sceptical since most of the Muggle psychics he had seen on TV reminded him strongly of Trelawney but he'd decided to give it a go anyways. It wasn't as if he had access to wizarding bookshops in Little Whinging.

He hadn't found much that was of any use, probably because most of the writers probably had no psychic talent whatsoever - kind of like all those New Age spell books with the little poems to recite _(guaranteed to bring you the love of your life!)_ and which had absolutely nothing to do with real magic. It was amazing sometimes, what ordinary Muggles could believe about magic.

Still, there had been one or two ideas, about imagining a strong shield or building a wall around your mind, which he was willing to try. After all, it wasn't really that much different from imagining a 'safe place.' He wasn't sure if it was working but figured that it couldn't really hurt to try.

He headed down the stairs to make dinner. There had been another improvement there. His portions were still smaller than Dudley's but Aunt Petunia had been so worried about the diet affecting Dudders _'delicate constitution'_ and Uncle Vernon so annoyed that his son (and himself) were being forced to eat _'bloody rabbit food'_ that instead they'd gone out and found a new diet, more suited to Dudley's _'athletic capabilities.' _

After all, Uncle Vernon said, they couldn't expect a strapping young man like Dudley to put on a good showing in the ring without a proper meal under his belt. Harry didn't think that Dudley being able to punch someone with his fat fist was really that athletic but he didn't complain. He was getting far more to eat, since it wouldn't do for the Order to think they were starving him, and it was all fairly balanced and nutritious.

When added to the food Mrs Weasley still sent him, since, having raised six of her own she was of the opinion that all growing boys were little better than bottomless pits, he was eating far better than he ever had before during the holidays. He was even hopeful that it was beginning to have an effect, or that maybe he was long overdue for a growth spurt. He certainly seemed a little bit taller, and a little more filled out, at least to himself. But it was hard to tell in Dudley's elephantine cast-offs.

He wasn't hoping for miracles, he knew perfectly well he'd probably never catch up with Ron, who was still shooting up like a weed, or Snape, though he would have paid good money to see the Potions Professors face if he was ever able to loom over him. He probably would have been able to sell tickets, but it didn't seem likely to happen. Still, if he managed to hit enough height not to be stuck with being the smallest sixth year then he'd be grateful. At the least it would be one less thing for Malfoy to mock.

Harry was working damn hard this summer, on anything he could get his hands on. After all, Hermione had given him plenty of books over the years as gifts, some of which he had barely bothered to open. Sirius and Remus had got him that excellent set of DADA books last year, which had been a great help with the DA, but he certainly hadn't learnt _everything _in them. He was doing his best to change that though. He was even going through all his old school books.

Although he knew he was fairly skilled for his age in DADA and Charms he was well aware that he could have done better on most of his OWL's, and he felt that if he at least read over some of his old stuff then maybe he could improve. Magic wasn't like some of the subjects learned in Muggle school where you only needed to remember long enough to pass the test and then you moved onto something new. It was more like maths, where if you didn't know the basics then you struggled with the rest. He didn't want to risk any weaknesses if he could help it.

Hermione was already going on about how much more intense the NEWT level work was and how she wasn't prepared. Personally Harry was more afraid of not being prepared for Death Eaters than exams but either way it was still a good idea to make sure his grasp of OWL level subjects was secure. And he didn't really have a lot else to do in the evenings.

He'd given Dumbledore his word that he wouldn't spend any more time than necessary outdoors once it started getting dark. He'd done most of his holiday homework, had reread the books from his previous years (even Lockhart's, as nauseating as they had been, and then he'd written all of the useful information in a notebook so he never had to look at them again. After all, what use was it knowing what Lockhart favourite colour was?)

He'd even taken to studying Herbology and Potions while he cooked. It was actually quite amusing; working out how much of a certain herb would turn the Dursley's stew poisonous or wondering, if he added some beetle eyes, was it likely to blow up. He'd take a list of the ingredients from a recipe and work out if there were any potions he could make with just them (one dinner party he had been amused to find could have made a simple Flatulence Potion) although usually he had to add other ingredients.

Other times he would try and think of how many potions he could make that included all the herbs and spices that had been in the recipe. While he was working he'd try to list all the magical properties they had and then check his herbology text to see how many he'd gotten right. It was actually one of his better ideas. He'd always enjoyed cooking and relating the drier aspects of the two courses to something he had always loved was certainly helping him to remember the information.

Maybe if he treated it more like cooking he'd get along better in Potions? That is if the greasy git actually let him take the NEWT class, which Harry doubted. Now if only he could do something similar with History of Magic, unfortunately the only thing his studying those books had done was ensure that he fell asleep without too many problems. On the other hand, considering what had happened in the exam, Harry didn't feel it was likely that he'd actually still be taking the class so it didn't really matter all that much.


	3. Happy Birthday to Me!

_Authors Note: Wow, I was sat here the other night typing up an essay and my inbox kept beeping with reviews. I was practically bouncing in my seat. Thank you! Thank you all for being so nice about the story, and sharing your views! hugs reviewers Hope this lives up to your expectations. _

_Spoilers: All 5 books_

_Disclaimer: Is there anyone out there who actually believes that I own the rights to Harry Potter? No? Good._

**Chapter Two: Happy Birthday to Me!**

It wasn't quite midnight but Harry had the windows of his bedroom wide open and a wide selection of bowls of water, owl snacks and kitchen leftovers laid out on his desk. He didn't want to be unprepared this time, and he had a feeling there would be more owls than usual. His friends would certainly send him something, the school definitely would, the order possibly and then there were the members of the DA who had been writing to him sporadically over the holidays, at least a few of them would likely send him something.

Considering the amount of mail he had received since the breaking news of Voldemort's return he wouldn't put it past the wizarding public to have decided that now he was a hero again, and not a deluded madman, that he deserved birthday presents. Not that he'd complain too much about getting extra presents but still, he didn't really like the idea of all those strangers writing to him.

At least he was assured that nothing harmful could get through the wards around the house. Professor Flitwick had apparently made sure of that since it wasn't unknown for people to send malicious owls, like Hermione and the bubotuber pus back in fourth year. He most definitely didn't want to see what Voldemort or his Death Eaters might decide were appropriate birthday greetings.

There was a definite sound of wings getting closer as Harry counted down to his sixteenth birthday. He'd barely finished wishing himself a Happy Birthday when the first, an incredibly imposing and unfamiliar Eagle Owl swooped in, followed by rather more owls than he usually saw. Ah, he thought sardonically, fan mail.

He sighed, and then smiled slightly. At least he could confidently say that for once he had gotten more birthday presents than Dudley. Thankfully most wizarding owls were smart enough to understand when he asked them to be quiet and form a more orderly line; the only exceptions being Pig, who was as usual on the owl equivalent of a sugar high and Errol, who as usual seemed to be mostly dead. Harry carefully carried him over to his usual spot beside Hedwig to recover.

The Eagle Owl was still staring at him regally so he carefully took the proffered parcel and very politely offered it a choice from the selection of treats on his desk. It might have been his imagination but the owl seemed quite impressed, he could have sworn she gave him that same reserved look of approval that McGonagall favoured. He opened the letter and began to read.

_Hi Harry! _

_I sent Hecuba off early so she should reach you on time for your birthday; she's my Gran's bird. Gran said to wish you a happy birthday so happy birthday Harry! She was very impressed with my Owl results (for Gran at any rate!), especially defence, said my Dad would've been proud of me. She knows someone on the marking board but she isn't telling me anything, says I have to wait and see. Anyway, I was wondering if you were going to keep up with the DA next year? I hope you do, I've never done as well with any other defence teacher. I'm staying with Ron and Hermione for now which is okay, though Hermione is already planning a study schedule for next year. Anyway I hope you like this present, I thought really hard about what to get you and I think you'll like it. Happy Sixteenth Harry! _

_Neville_

Harry opened the wrapping paper to see a beautiful book in scarlet trimmed with gold, with the Gryffindor lion on the front. He opened it to find a large picture of Hogwarts as seen from the first year boats on the lake, lights flickering up at him. He turned the page; there was a picture of the Gryffindor table at the sorting, with Harry and Ron laughing while Hermione frowned at them.

He turned the pages eagerly, the head table, with Dumbledore twinkling madly, evidence of the Weasley Twins pranks, various Quidditch shots, of Harry catching the snitch while a sulking Malfoy tried desperately to catch up, even a shot of the match with Harry conjuring the patronus. He turned the page and, to his delight, found not only a picture of McGonagall berating Malfoy and his goons as they sprawled in a heap, tangled in their 'dementor' robes but also one of Malfoy as 'the 'Amazing Bouncing Ferret.' Harry wondered if he could get another copy and frame it for Ron's birthday.

There were simple ones of him and his friends studying by the lake before the OWLs, or celebrating the end of them in the Three Broomsticks, ones from key moments in his Hogwarts career, the First Task of the TriWizard Tournament, the abortive Duelling Club match where Malfoy conjured the snake, even the results of Malfoy trying to hex him on the Hogwarts express at the end of last year, all there. It was a wonderful. He had to have gotten the pictures from Colin but it was clear that a great deal of thought had gone into the gift.

Harry opened his trunk and reverently placed the book with the one of his parents. It was definitely his newest treasured possession.

He turned to Errol, who was by now sitting up and hooting weakly, looking slightly shell-shocked that he had once again survived a delivery. He smiled, if Owls were sorted Errol would probably be a Hufflepuff, he never gave up. Harry stroked him in thanks and helped him over to the choicest of the Owl Treats, where Errol gave him a grateful peck as he removed the box he had carried. As usual there was an assortment of letters from the assortment of Weasleys, which he opened first.

_Dear Partner _

_As you turned down (you idiot!) our generous offer of the very finest in Dragonhide jackets, in a colour of our choice we decided to spread the wealth with something that perhaps you will appreciate a little more (you'd better!). And so, along with the usual assortment of useful and entertaining products from our private stocks we included a little something else. Enjoy._

_May all your pranks be wicked, and the blame never cast your way._

_Gred and Forge_

_Owners Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes _

Harry smiled as he looked into the wooden box with the triple W logo of the twins carved into it. You could always count on the twins for the finest and most inventive of prank supplies, though he was rather curious as to their other choice of present. He opened it and gasped. Beautiful black dragonhide wand holsters. Top quality. One to strap on his arm and one his calf.

Now these were dead useful. He knew Aurors used them, as they were a definite plus when duelling, giving more ease of movement and speed in drawing. You could even hide a second wand on your person. At least now he had a way of keeping his wand on him at all times that wouldn't set off the Dursleys or even risk him 'losing a buttock.' If Moody came to get him this time then he'd have nothing to complain about. He'd definitely have to thank the twins when he saw them.

Bill had sent a book on _'Curses, Counter-Curses and Curse breaking,_' which sounded interesting. Charlie had sent one called _'Interesting Beasts: How to Survive When They Don't Love You Back'_ which included pictures of evasive manoeuvres and lists of the best spells to use against them, with a little note saying that with Hagrid in the school and the Dark Lord outside it they'd probably need it. Mrs Weasley had sent some homemade sweets and a birthday cake, and Mr Weasley a tie pin in the shape of a Gryphon, which apparently had a few small protection spells on it. He immediately pinned it to the tie in his trunk. It looked quite good.

Pig was apparently tiring so Harry felt it safe to catch him and open the letters from his closest friends. He began to read.

_Hey mate!_

_Happy Birthday! Hermione said something about you being sweet or getting sweets or something as a Muggle custom but I didn't really get it** (honestly Ron, its 'Sweet Sixteen,' its an important birthday for Muggles)** Well anyways, according to Dad we should be seeing you soon, which will at least get you away from the ruddy muggles. Bet they're not being very sweet. You should feed them some of Fred and Georges new sweets, they make you really sickly sweet to everyone, they want to call them Anti-Snapes. Can you imagine if we fed them to all the Slytherins? _

_**Hello again Harry, I'll take over for a bit since Ron's busy laughing his head off at the thought of a sweet Malfoy. How are your extra studies going? I must say I think it was an excellent idea of yours to go everything before the start of term, I feel a lot more prepared now, though I've heard that fifth year is nothing when you compare it to sixth. I'm still not sure I'm ready.**_

_Ha, she's been sending us all crazy trying to organize study sessions and homework sessions! I don't know how much more ready she can possibly be! At least I don't have to worry about not having done my holiday work right, she bullied me around so much I've actually got it all finished. Mum was gobsmacked when she found out! **(I didn't bully you Ron!) **She did mate; you know what she's like! Anyway Happy Birthday!_

_Ron and Hermione_

The parcel for once didn't contain a text book but a planner, which he opened very warily but it didn't seem to be enchanted to screech things at him like those annoying homework diary things she'd given him and Ron before. A little note tucked inside said she hoped it would be useful when planning the DA meetings. Ron's was a wizarding version of Tic Tac Toe, with a note saying that Harry had to be able to give him a better run for his money at that than at chess. He'd smiled at that.

The note from Ginny was interesting, telling him that Ron didn't seem to be putting his heart into complaining about studying or spending all his time in library like he used to, maybe because he'd finally cottoned on that the more time he spent around work and books, the more time he spent with Hermione. She'd sent him a selection of sweets and a few chocolate frog cards he hadn't got.

He turned to look at the rest of the patiently waiting owls. 'Are any of you from people at Hogwarts?' he asked. A significant number of them flew forward. Alright, he thought. Here goes. He reached out to a random bird and began opening gifts. Most of them were from members of the DA, though he wasn't surprised to find that Zacharias Smith and Cho Chang were among those who hadn't sent anything. Many of the others had, though.

Although a lot of them had sent sweets or joke items he also got a variety of other things. Terry Boot had sent him some Raven Quills, and his girlfriend Susan Bones some coloured inks, including one in Gryffindor red which sparkled with gold. Ernie Macmillan had sent a book on becoming an Auror while Justin Finch-Fletchley sent one on teaching. Seamus had sent him a T-shirt with a Lion on and Dean some wand polish and a note full of innuendoes that made Harry grin. Luna had sent a subscription to the Quibbler while Lavender, Parvati and a few of the other girls that he didn't know very well had given him a gift voucher for Gladrags Wizardwear.

There were all sorts of little gifts, all accompanied by notes wishing him a Happy Birthday and most of which also asked about the DA. Dobby had sent socks again only this time one was red and had a spell book on it and the other was a golden yellow with a wand on. Oh well, even Dobby's idea of footwear was a lot better than Vernon and Dudley's cast-offs.

He stacked the pile of opened presents haphazardly by his bed, deciding to leave sorting them out until he woke up in the morning and turned to the rest of the owls. 'Anyone from the Order?' he asked and this time a smaller selection came forward. Moody had sent a copy of a book that was required reading for trainee aurors, Tonks a selection of Hair dyes and Lupin a ring he'd found that apparently used to belong to his parents. Harry had just stopped and stared at that.

It was his fathers Gryffindor class ring, which he'd given to Lily when they started dating. According to Lupin she'd rarely taken it off until the day James had replaced it with an engagement ring and had later lost it when the chain she'd worn it on had snapped. They'd had their initials engraved in it on the first anniversary of their first date. Harry felt tears spring into his eyes as he read Lupins note. He had so very little of his parents, and to have something that had meant so much to both of them…it was one of the best presents he'd ever had.

There was a pompous looking owl that kept trying to get his attention which Harry had decided had to be from the ministry but he decided against opening that and instead turned to the group of owls from unknown persons. A lot of them contained outrage on his behalf that the wizarding world had treated him so badly, which Harry snorted at since he was fairly sure he recognised at least one of them's writing from his former hate mail.

Many of them included cloying or ingratiating remarks on his heroism. Some of them were downright alarming - he held up a lacy pink thong with one finger and decided not to even read the note. As for the ones who had sent him silk boxer shorts he was almost afraid to find out why they had been sent, and decided the safest bet was probably to wash them anyway. Still, some of the notes were earnest commiserations on what had happened or simple thanks for his actions. Those letters he kept. And at the very least he'd gotten another little pile of presents out of it! As a matter of fact, he had to rate this as one of his best birthdays ever, really.

Finally, and with a certain amount of dread, Harry turned to the official looking Ministry owl. He didn't have a lot of reason to welcome owls from the Ministry, so it was with the air of a man reaching out for a ticking time bomb that he untied the letter from the owls leg. He took a deep breath, reminded himself that Gryffindors were supposed to be courageous and slipped his fingers under the seal.


	4. Important Mail

_Spoilers: first five books._

_Disclaimer: if you recognise it then it probably belongs to someone else - I'm just playing with it for a while._

**Important Mail**

Harry slid the letter from its envelope and slowly unfolded it. He knew it had to be his OWL results. His heart was pounding rapidly and he felt a little sick. He was fairly confident of his marks in defence but his mind insisted on going over all the mistakes he knew he'd made in the other exams: the fanged geranium bite, the way he'd mixed up the growth and colour change charms on his practical, the way he'd forgotten the definition of the switching spell in Transfiguration.

Then he thought of the fact that he'd probably made other mistakes that he didn't remember, or didn't even know that he'd made - truthfully most of the exam period was something of a blur. Now he really felt sick.

He took a few calming breaths, swallowed hard, and finally looked down to see his marks.

_Dear Mr Potter, _

_Enclosed are the results of your Ordinary Wizarding Level examinations. Due to the circumstances under which your Astronomy exam took place, the Ministry has approved a lowering of the grade requirements for that examination in order to take into account the disruption. _

_Astronomy: Acceptable_

_Care of Magical Creatures: Outstanding_

_Charms: Outstanding_

_Defence Against the Dark Arts: Outstanding _

_Divination: Dreadful_

_Herbology: Exceeds Expectations_

_History of Magic: Poor_

_Potions: Exceeds Expectations_

_Transfiguration: Exceeds Expectations_

_Overall Result: Seven Owls. _

_Congratulations on your success Mr Potter and best wishes for your sixth year. _

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Griselda Marchbanks_

_Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority._

Harry blinked, and suddenly remembered to breathe. Seven OWLs. He had _seven _OWLs. _He had seven OWLs! _He reminded himself that breathing that fast really wasn't healthy and decided to take a few more calming breaths before he hyperventilated. _Wow,_ he thought; he had seven OWL's.

He hadn't actually been expecting to do quite that well, what with everything that had happened. Of course he'd known that he had failed History of Magic and Divination and was quite frankly glad that he never had to face another lesson with either Trelawney or Binns.

He was pleasantly surprised at the Astronomy mark, he knew he hadn't done all that well in the theory exam and the practical had been a complete waste of time once Umbridge and her Ministry goons had gone after Hagrid. If they hadn't lowered the grading curve then there was no way he would have passed.

And he'd gotten O's and E's for all the rest. Even Potions. Now that was a bit of a surpise, he'd felt sure during the exam that he had managed to pass but he hadn't actually expected to do that well. As far as Harry was concerned it was yet another thing that showed what a truly rotten teacher Snape was. Imagine what he might have been capapble of with a decent teacher!

He had to admit that he was a bit disappointed, it would have been so great if he had received the grade he needed for the NEWT class. Not just to become an Auror but so he could seriously rub Snapes nose in the fact that he was an 'Outstanding' Potions student. It would almost have been worth signing on for the extra two years of abuse, just to see his face.

On the other hand he didn't have to have Snape again, unless Dumbledore made him take more 'extra-curricular' lessons like Occlumency from him. That was a definite plus.

He was a bit ambivalous over the whole issue really. He did want to _train_ as an Auror because they were the very best, and he would _need_ that sort of training against Voldemort. Even if he somehow managed to kill Voldemort before he left Hogwarts there was still a high probability that the Death Eaters would come after him hoping for revenge, or that another Dark Wizard or Witch would eventually decide that their best way to fame and fear would be to kill The-Boy-Who-Lived.

He wasn't likely to forget that what had happenned to the Longbottoms had happenned _after_ the Dark Lord was defeated. Or that bad people could still wriggle out of being sent to Azkhaban. Look at Lucius Malfoy, or Macnair and the others, who were trusted and even employed by the Ministry, leaving them free to do things like, oh, set basilisks loose on the school.

Harry was under no illusions that the world would suddenly become perfectly safe when Voldemort died. He hoped he didn't end up as paranoid as Moody but he did feel that he needed as much training in defending himself as he could get.

However he wasn't sure he actually wanted to _be_ an Auror. He didn't like having to be the one to rid the world of _one_ Dark Lord - would he really enjoy spending the rest of his life running around after more?

And the whole being-under-the-control-of-the-Ministry thing; he didn't like the idea of having to obey an idiot like Fudge _at all!_ Shacklebolt and Tonks were alright but even if they had managed to do their bit for the Order since it had been reformed he'd bet they still had to spend most of their time running around and doing Fudges bidding.

Harry may not have known exactly what he wanted to do with his life but he knew damn well that he didn't want to spend it kissing the misistries ass!

No, he was sick enough of being yanked around by Dumbledore, who he knew was only doing what he thought was best. No way was he going to take on a career that meant bowing to the whims of ministerial incompetents like Fudge, or Umbridge, or Percy Weasley for that matter! Not a chance!

He really wasn't sure what he wanted. He was only (just) sixteen - how was he supposed to know what he wanted to do for the rest of his life? After all, he thought darkly, as the words of the prophecy resurfaced, he didn't even know if he was likely to have a life to plan for.

He mentally shrugged, no matter how long he lived, whether he graduated or not, he had to know how to fight. Given the chance, despite the downsides, he would train as an auror. They were the best, and he needed to be the best if he was going to survive, that's all there was to it. Besides, once the training was over he could always quit.

He sighed. There had to be ways around the problem of his lack of potions NEWT. He smirked slightly; there was always the chance that he could use his fame_ for_ him for once. Now that he was the Golden Boy again he might be able to talk the Ministry into letting him in without one. He was sure some of the Order's Aurors would recommend him, if he asked.

Did wizards have night school? Or correspondence courses? There was that Kwikspell course, it was always possible there was a OWL level potions one. Maybe he could take a summer course or something that would give him enough knowledge of potions to get in.

Now he thought about it, McGonagall had said she would make damn sure he could become an Auror during that careers interview. His head of house knew what Snape was like; she had to know there was a good chance he wouldn't get in to the NEWT class. So there had to be a way around it, otherwise she wouldn't have said it. He smiled, pleased to have resolved that in his mind. He'd have to go talk to her once they got back to Hogwarts.

And if worst came to worst, there were other options. He supposed he could always apprentice to a Duelling Master like Flitwick, that sort of specialized training might work almost as well as Auror training. At least in the attacking and defending aspects. It probably didn't include things like 'Stealth and Tracking' but maybe Tonks or someone could give him some extra training? He was sure he could work something out.

He looked down at the results again. Seven Owls was pretty good. Fred and George had only gotten three each. Of course Hermione was likely to have ten O's but that was Hermione. He wondered what Ron and Neville had.

He hoped Ron had done well enough to please his Mother, she had been rather vocal in her disappointment with the twins and he didn't want that for his best mate. As for Neville's Gran, well, she could probably give Molly Weasley a good run for her money! He didn't think either of them would have done too badly, after all they had all put in an awful lot of effort, and they'd had the benefit of Hermione to push them. He felt sure they would have done quite well.

Harry realised he was sporting a huge grin as he went over to share his news with Hedwig. It wasn't as if he could share it with the Dursleys after all, and his friends weren't there to share it with. They had agreed to wait until they got together to share their results with each other, since otherwise it would mean them celebrating at Grimmauld Place while Harry was stuck in Surrey.

He wondered if Ron or Hermione was likely to burst before he got there. Or if Mrs Weasley would shake it out of them. His grin widened even more at the resulting mental images. Then he wondered what the Dursleys faces would be like if he was there when Dudley got his G.C.S.E results and just happened to mention how well his own exams had gone. He quickly stifled the snickers that were threatening to burst out; it wouldn't do to wake them up.

Looking around the room he realised most of the owls had taken the opportunity to leave while he'd been reading, with the exception of Hedwig, Errol, Pig and what looked like one of the school owls. Of course, his Hogwarts letter. He reached for it and thanked the owl, apologising for taking so long to get to it. The owl seemed understanding; it had probably had to deal with other OWL students over the years. Besides, not everyone was awake at the early morning hour when he usually received owls, he supposed they sometimes had to roost outside and wait for a decent hour.

He didn't hesitate at all as he opened this letter.

_Dear Mr Potter,_

_Congratulations on the results of your OWL examinations. As you are no doubt aware your Sixth and Seventh Years will focus on preparing for your NEWT examinations. Enclosed is a form of the options available, please refrain from choosing any of those whose entry requirements you do not meet, as you will not be accepted onto the course without the appropriate grades. You will notice that Hogwarts offers a number of courses which are not available at OWL level; a form summarizing the contents of these courses has also been enclosed. We await your owl not later than August 6th. Your book list will be sent out to you by August 22nd. _

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress._

New courses? Harry turned eagerly to the second form.

_**Sixth Year Courses available at Hogwarts School of Witch craft and Wizardry**_

_**Basic Medimagic**: entry requirements: Potions (A), Transfigurations (A), and Charms (E)._

_This course introduces the student to the basics of Mediwizardry. The student will learn a variety of skills including how to use diagnosis spells, the reversal of simple magical mishaps and ways of treating common illnesses and accidental injuries._

_**Wandless Magic:** entry requirements: Charms (E)._

_This course will look at the wide variety of talents and skills which do not require the use of a wand including Elemental Magics, Warding, and true Wandless Magic, which is the ability to cast normal spells without a wand._

_**Household Magic: **entry requirements: Charms (A) and Transfiguration (A)._

_This course involves learning the incredibly useful 'everyday' magics involved in making cooking, cleaning, dressmaking, gardening and other domestic chores easier. _

_**Enchantment:** entry requirements: Charms (E) and Transfiguration (E)._

_This course shows how enchanted items are made, from simple Protective Talismans to the feats of magical engineering involved in Broom Design. Students are expected to learn how to enchant a number of items, how to identify enchanted items from ordinary ones, and how to discover the uses of various enchantments on unfamiliar objects. _

_**Magical Law:** entry requirements: History of Magic (A)_

_This course charts the development of the laws governing Wizarding society as a whole and the way laws are created, changed and carried out by the Ministry. It also covers the ways in which the various departments work within the Ministry and how the various Ministries work together on an international level. _

_**Ritual Magics**: entry requirements: Astronomy (A), Arithmancy (A) and Ancient Runes (E). _

_This course teaches complex rituals and their uses. Rituals, although more common in the past, are still used today to summon, ground and shape very powerful magics. _

_**One Year Courses of Certification.**_

_**Magic Maintenance:** entry requirements Charms (A), Herbology (A) and Transfiguration (A)._

_This course teaches how to keep magical equipment working at peak performance, including how to spot and how to fix various malfunctions or quirks._

_**Apparition:** entry requirements: none._

_This course, completed when the student takes their Apparition Test at the Ministry of Magic, teaches the art of almost instantaneous travel from one point to another._

Well, thought Harry. Some of those definitely sound interesting. He looked at the list again. Ritual Magics was out for a start, since he didn't have OWLs in Arithmancy or Ancient Runes, though he rather wished that he'd taken one of them (Ancient Runes probably) rather than wasting his time with Divination. He could take his pick of the rest though.

He definitely wanted to learn Apparition since neither Floo travel nor Portkeys particularly agreed with him and being able to apparate out of trouble would certainly be an advantage.

Medimagic would be very useful considering how much time he often spent in the hospital wing, whether from sheer chance or from deliberate action by Voldie's various supporters. Yes, Medimagic would be a very useful skill to know.

Wandless Magic. Well, he'd been curious about that for a while since he knew he had been making things happen wandlessly ever since he was a baby. Look at what had happened to Aunt Marge! If he could learn to do that sort of thing at will then that would be a definite advantage the next time he found himself without a wand.

He had a sudden mental image of an enormously bloated Voldemort floating away while Mr Malfoy ran about trying to catch him and snorted softly.

Enchantment must be how the Marauders made their map or Sirius his mirror and the knife. It was probably how Tom made his diary. He definitely wanted to take that course.

Magic Maintenance could be useful, though it sounded rather like magical DIY and he knew from seeing Uncle Vernon's efforts that it was usually better to call in an expert. As for Household Magic, he could certainly make use of it; he imagined the Dursleys faces next summer, after he turned seventeen, using his wand to do chores. It would also be good for when he eventually got his own place.

On the other hand, the other courses sounded a lot more useful in helping him survive long enough to actually _get_ his own place. Not knowing how to fold laundry with his wand wasn't exactly life threatening after all. Besides, it wasn't really that important - he already knew how to do everything around the house the Muggle way.

So that left him with four new courses: Basic Medimagic, Wandless Magic, Apparition and Enchantment. He was definitely dropping Astronomy, History and Divination, and possibly Potions as well so it fit rather neatly. Although he had to wonder if he would have any spare time at all in the next two years since the NEWT courses were supposed to be considerably harder than the OWL's.

He wondered what Hermione was going to do, faced with all these new lessons to be learned but being forced to drop some of her old ones. She was probably drawing up huge lists of pros and cons to try and help her decide.

Well, at least his decision was made. He reached for his options form, deciding to fill it in immediately rather than leave it to the last minute. That way he wouldn't have to worry about it. He filled in his choices, wondering at his sanity in wanting to take so many exams. He could almost hear Ron's voice telling him that he was mental.

He reached the box for Potions and realised suddenly that the entry requirement was marked down as an E. He could still take Potions! He wasn't quite sure whether to be relieved or not. And what on earth had forced Snape to change his mind? He wouldn't have just decided to change it out of the goodness of his heart. Harry wasn't sure he had one.

It had to be McGonagall or Dumbledore. One of them had to have forced him into it. He didn't look forward to the snide remarks _that_ was sure to get him, about how the rules were always bent for the Gryffindor Golden Boy and how he was just like his father. He sighed softly and suddenly caught sight of his battered old clock radio. It was ten past two!

He decided not to worry about it until the morning and walked over to say a soft goodnight to the owls on his desk, even though Errol was once again unconscious and Pig's sugar high had obviously crashed. Hedwig on the other hand was obviously determined to keep him company as long as he was awake and was watching him affectionately from her perch. He ruffled her feathers gently and she rubbed her beak against his hand fondly.

'Night Hedwig,' he whispered as he climbed into bed, smiling at the knowledge that the Dursleys weren't likely to wake him up too early on his birthday, just in case he happened to mention it to any of his 'freak friends.'


	5. Birthday Surprises

_Spoilers: surely by this point you've figured this out already?_

_Disclaimer: Do I** look **like JKR? Hey! Who are you calling **short!**_

**Birthday Surprises**

It was eight o'clock in the morning when his Aunt Petunia yelled that it was time for breakfast. _Time for breakfast?_ Harry thought fuzzily._ I haven't even made it yet!_

By the time he had brushed his teeth and gotten dressed, in Seamus' Lion shirt and one of the less horrible pairs of Dudley's cast-off jeans, he had figured it out. It was his birthday. And evidently the Dursleys were going to treat him nicely, (or as nicely as the Dursleys could) for once, not wanting him to complain about his relatives behaviour when the Order picked him up, which Harry had been assured would happen earlier in the summer than it usually did. Well, Harry thought, this should be fun!

As he walked into the kitchen he saw that Dudley was staring balefully at the plate across from him which held four rashers of beautifully cooked bacon, a mound of fluffy scrambled eggs, two fat sausages, plum tomatoes and a slice of fried bread. He was probably shocked to see quite that much food on Harry's plate. Then he glanced over at Dudley's own plate and realised that while there was definitely more there, it wasn't nearly so much more as usual. He probably felt deprived.

'Well, sit down boy!' his Aunt Petunia snapped out. 'Don't want to waste it.'

He sat, still slightly shocked but feeling his Inner Slytherin rubbing his hands in glee at having the Dursleys pandering to him for once. He smiled at the image. Even with the letters going out to the Order every three days the Dursleys had managed to make their dislike of their nephew more than plain. They just tried to be a bit more subtle at it. Though subtle wasn't a word which really fit any of them very well.

But for his _birthday_, a day the Order was sure to quiz him on, a day they would be expected to make an effort on, well, it really wouldn't do for them to ignore it as they usually did. That would be sure to be passed along in his next letter. No, they were forced to do something, so they could at least _claim_ to have made some sort of effort. Even if it wasn't much of an effort.

Harry didn't really expect them to do much to celebrate his birthday, he would probably keel over and save Voldemort the hassle of killing him if they had, but hey, with his family, any sort of effort was better than usual.

'Thank you Aunt Petunia,' he said, reaching across the table to help himself to some apple juice. It was nice to have something other than Pumpkin Juice with meals sometimes. Uncle Vernon grunted something that sounded suspiciously like Happy Birthday, or what Happy Birthday would sound like if, say, Dumbledore had made Snape say it to Sirius. Or Ron to Malfoy.

'Good Morning Uncle Vernon, Dudley.' Dudley was still glaring at him while he forked enormous mouthfuls of food into his mouth. Harry knew that Dudley was going to make his parents pay, through the nose, for this, but truthfully he couldn't bring himself to care.

He thought of it as his birthday gift from his relatives, the knowledge that not only was the fact that they were forced to treat him in a half-way civilised fashion by the threat of the Order seriously annoying all of them but that Dudley was sure to make his parents suffer for the indignity. What more could an unwanted nephew ask for? He beamed round at them all.

Harry was rather enjoying the luxury of having the Dursleys treat him almost like a member of the family, having been allowed a bit of a lie-in, being fed breakfast and treated with actual civility. Or as close as the Dursleys were ever likely to get. He wondered what on earth they would do next. He didn't have to wonder long.

'Duddems, if you could go and get the package on my bed for mummy please?' Aunt Petunia sounded as if she was speaking through clenched teeth, which she probably was - that smile did look awfully strained. Dudley was obviously trying for a pained look over the nickname and anger and resentment over what he was about to do but somehow only managed to look rather constipated.

He stomped off up the stairs while Harry tried to process what he'd just heard. _A package? Did that mean the Dursleys were actually going to give him a present?!_ Dudley came back with a box which was wrapped up in old Christmas wrapping paper, but was still sparkly, and it was sporting a somewhat squashed yellow ribbon on top. Harry felt like sliding off his chair in a faint. _Guess it did._

Dudley shoved it across the table at him with a muttered 'Happy Birthday.' Harry stared at it in shock for a moment before picking it up. He wondered what on earth it could be. They wouldn't dare give him a tissue or an old sock this time but somehow he just couldn't wrap his head around one of them going out and actually buying something for him.

'Um, thank you Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, Dudley.' He started to unwrap the present, somewhat impatient to know what exactly the Dursleys thought would make him a good, or should that be adequate, birthday present. He revealed a small brown box and reached inside it to pull out…a mobile phone? They'd actually bought him a …wait a minute.

That phone looked familiar. He checked. Yes there was definitely a little scuffing around the edges, and a small dint in the corner, as if the phone had been thrown around or knocked about carelessly. Which it probably had. It was Dudley's old mobile.

His faith in the Dursleys essential natures once again confirmed he gave them a bright smile and told them it was just what he'd wanted. Truth to tell he really wasn't disappointed, it was miles better than anything else they'd ever given him and for something that had once belonged to Dudley it was in an amazingly good condition. Probably because he'd only gotten his new, top-of-the-range phone about a week ago. Dudley used his phone like a status symbol, always flashing it around - so he had to take a certain amount of care of it.

'Really,' he assured the Dursleys. 'It's wonderful.' They probably thought that since he was a wizard it would be utterly useless to him. A useless, second-hand gift that showed him exactly how much they cared about his birthday while at the same time being one he couldn't really complain about and get them into trouble for. He wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of thinking they were right.

Besides, he knew an awful lot of Muggleborn and Half-Blood witches and wizards. Having his own number was sure to come in very handy. No more problems with Ron getting his Uncle if he phoned the house, a number that Hermione could use at any time - this was probably the best Muggle present he could have been given. He beamed at his relatives as he stood up from the table.

'Thanks again. I'll just go and put this away safely,' he said, moving towards the stairs. The Dursleys looked rather disappointed that he wasn't upset.

'You'll have to pay for your own credit of course.' Aunt Petunia bit out.

'Of course,' he replied, gathering up the other things that had come with the phone, the charger and one or two other bits and pieces that he didn't stop to investigate and heading up the stairs towards his room. 'I'll be down in a moment to help with the dishes.'

Harry closed the door to his room and laughed softly remembering the disgruntled look on their faces. He'd have to ask Hermione if she could get her parents to send him some credit since he highly doubted any of the shops in Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade had any. And she probably had more idea about how to work the phone than he did anyways. He put it with the pile of things to be sorted out and put away and turned to head back downstairs when he heard a short burst of beautiful music.

'Fawkes!' he exclaimed. 'What are you doing here?' The phoenix gave him an amused look and cocked his head towards the scroll tied to his leg. 'Oh, a message. Sorry about that Fawkes, I'm just having a bit of an unusual day.' He smiled as the bird trilled a few understanding notes and opened the message.

_Dear Harry,_

_Happy Birthday dear boy. I have sent this message with Fawkes as he is far less likely to be intercepted than any owl. I will not give you exact times nor say exactly who is coming but I would recommend that you pack your trunk as early as possible. The person sent to collect you will no doubt wish to make sure that you are in fact you so do not be offended by anything they ask, from what I have heard of the last time you were picked up you will no doubt reciprocate in kind. _

_Yours truly,_

_Albus Dumbledore._

That was Dumbledore alright; he never came right out and said anything although Harry could see the reasoning behind it this time. Still it sounded like he might be escaping Privet Drive sometime today, certainly sometime soon. Perhaps he had better start packing his trunk immediately; he did have rather more than usual to pack after all. He bounded down the stairs.

'Aunt Petunia! I've just had a letter from my Headmaster and he wants me to pack as quickly as I can since he isn't sure at exactly what time I'll be getting picked up. After all I wouldn't want them to have to wait around at all.' His Aunt had been looking decidedly annoyed at the start of his little speech but had progressed to looking a little green, no doubt wondering what the neighbours were going to think when a bunch of wizards showed up.

She paused and Harry could almost see the wheels turning in her head. If she made him do the dishes and his other 'daily chores,' then the Order might show up when he wasn't all prepared to go. They would have to wait for him. If she made them wait outside then the neighbours would talk, and if she didn't…then they'd have to wait in the house. In_ her_ house. She might even have to _entertain_ them.

Harry knew when she blanched that she was remembering the havoc the Weasleys had caused in just a few short minutes when they picked him up for the Quidditch World Cup. In fact, she was in the same sort of dilemma that Uncle Vernon had been that summer. Letting him out of chores would make him happy but making him do them would mean putting up with him, and his friends, longer than she had to.

She waved him back upstairs and Harry grinned widely to himself. Even if the Order didn't show up before lunch he had gotten out of chores and could spend his time happily away from his family, shut up in his room for a while, sorting out his new belongings. He certainly wasn't going to hurry down as soon as he was finished either!

As a matter of fact it wasn't long after lunch, which was some hours past the time when Harry had finished arranging all his belongings in his trunk to his satisfaction, that the Order arrived. He had spent the intervening time meditating and concentrating on reinforcing his mental barriers, which bore quite a resemblance to the walls of Hogwarts, since he hadn't had time to practice before breakfast.

There was a knock on the door, which Harry rushed to answer, wand firmly tucked in his arm holster. He opened the door and smiled at the motley collection of Wizards and Witches stood on the Dursleys doorstep, naturally there wasn't just one as, if the letter had been intercepted, hopefully the enemy wouldn't have been prepared when this many showed up.

'Hey Harry!' Charlie Weasley smiled. 'What would Hagrid name a Norwegian Ridgeback?'

That was an easy enough question. 'Norbert' he grinned back.

Charlie nodded his head at the bowler hatted Moody. 'Are you all packed?' he growled. 'And where's your wand? Not leaving it lying about are you?'

'Ready when you are.' Harry smiled at the retired Auror and pushed his sleeve up slightly. 'And I don't go anywhere without my wand these days. Though now I'm in no danger of losing a buttock!' Charlie snorted at that. 'But first, Charlie what did the twins use that dragon dung you sent them for?'

'What, oh before the World Cup. They stuck it in Percy's in-tray; they were needling him about that for weeks afterwards.'

'Right Harry, show me to your trunk and we can get going.' That was the currently silver haired Tonks who accompanied Harry indoors as he said a quick goodbye to the Dursleys and grabbed his things, while Moody and Charlie kept an eye on the house and the car. Just in case anyone tried anything. 'Ministry car,' Tonks explained. 'Reinforced wards and everything. Bloody good thing too, otherwise the Muggles would think there was some sort of parade with all the extra cars Moody would have had watching this one. We were lucky to talk him down to an escort of six.'

'Six?' Harry interjected. He'd only seen three so far.

'Shacklebolt's driving and there's two invisible Order members on brooms flanking the car,' she said. 'Not taking any chances.'

'Right,' Harry said and clambered inside with a quick smile to Shacklebolt. Within minutes they were on their way, taking a winding, circuitous road until the invisible members felt sure enough that there was no one following or observing them to go airborne. Harry settled back to enjoy the ride and, at Tonks' prompting, began telling everyone about his birthday so far and thanking them for the presents they had sent.

It didn't take long before they were pulling up in the driveway of Grimmauld Place.

'Harry!' A familiar bushy haired projectile hurled itself at him and he hugged her back with a smile as Ron came out of the door to clap him on the back with a grin.

'Hey Harry.' He said before turning to include his older brothers and the other Order members in the conversation. 'I thought we'd better come and warn you not to go into the kitchens - the twins set up some surprise to welcome you back with mate but somehow it went off a little early, or was set off, and it went all over Snape. Miserable Git went off it at the twins and then Mum came in and started to tell Snape off and when she realised what'd happened she started screaming at the twins. It's bedlam in there! Snape made some snide comment about the way they'd been raised and the twins started yelling at him and mum really blew her stack. The lot of them have been at it for over ten minutes! We're lucky Lupin thought to put a silencing charm up otherwise that old cow on the wall'd be joining in.' He gestured, rudely, at the portrait of Mrs Black. 'It's probably safest if we just go put your trunk away and stay there till they calm down.'

Tonks was giggling softly to herself and Charlie was smiling. 'I'd best go see if I can help,' he said. 'I'll come let you know when it's safe to come down.'

'Cheers bro.' said Ron with a smile. 'Now let's get your trunk. Besides Hermione's going to burst if she doesn't tell someone her OWL results soon.'

'Ronald Weasley!' Hermione smiled at Harry as they walked up the stairs towards the boys room. 'I told my parents already but Mrs Weasleys been wavering between thinking we're really sweet to wait for you before sharing our results and wanting to shake them out of us!'

Harry smiled at that and held open the door as the others walked into the bedroom. Neville was sat cross legged on one of the beds, behind a copy of _'Herbologists Monthly.'_ He laid it down and smiled at the group as they stuck Harry's trunk at the bottom of his bed.

'Happy Birthday Harry! Did you get my letter?'

'Yeah, thanks Neville, that's one of the best birthday presents I've ever had! Happy Birthday to you too.' Harry smiled at the sandy-haired boy and then turned to look at Ron and Hermione. 'Did you give him our present yet?'

'Ginny's gone to get it now,' said Hermione. 'We've been keeping it in our room.'

Just then Ginny walked in with a brightly wrapped box under her arm. 'Hi Harry, Happy Birthday.'

'Hi Ginny. Thanks for the chocolate frogs, and the cards, I didn't have any of them.'

She smiled back at him as they all moved to sit on Neville's bed as she handed over his birthday present. 'It's something we all chipped in for.' Neville beamed at them as he tore the wrapping paper off to reveal a beautiful box made of a dark wood, with bronze hinges. He opened it and gasped.

'We asked Professor Sprout what you would like and she recommended this set,' Hermione told him. 'She said it should have everything you need.' The four of them watched as Neville reverently handled the shiny tools, from the big, tough pruning shears to the delicate little scissors used for harvesting magical herbs.

'This is _wonderful._' He breathed softly. 'This is just _incredible_, thank you. Thank you sooo much.'

'Happy Birthday Neville.' Harry said again. 'So what else did you get?'

Neville carefully laid the box aside, though his fingers continued running over the glossy wood as he began to talk. 'Well, Uncle Algie and Aunt Enid got me a set of proper gardening robes and the rest of the family got me a subscription to _'Herbologists Monthly,'_ he said, gesturing towards the magazine. 'and some new plants. Gran got me a book on duelling techniques and she's getting a pond put in my green house so I've got somewhere to grow water plants! I've been wanting to grow some for ages but I never had anywhere to put them. The twins gave me a box of pranks and fireworks and stuff, Seamus and Dean sent sweets and Luna got me some fluffy green earmuffs, what about you?'

Harry began by thanking Ron and Hermione for his gifts before starting to tell them all about the contents of his midnight owl invasion, and soon had them laughing.

'_Frilly pink knickers?_' Ron almost choked, he was laughing so hard. 'Someone sent you _frilly pink knickers?_' He wasn't so impressed with the Dursleys gift but took Hermione's word for it that a mobile fellytone could be useful, even for a wizard.

'So,' Ginny asked eagerly once they had all calmed down. 'What did you all get on your OWL's? I've been dying to find out!'

A moments rummaging later all three had their Hogwarts letters out. 'All right,' Hermione said, 'I'll start. From the top?' At everyone's nods she took a breath and began. 'Well, none of you took them but I got Outstandings for both Ancient Runes and Arithmancy.' She smiled. 'Obviously it didn't matter too much that I mistranslated that Rune. OK. Astronomy. Outstanding.'

She turned to Neville who pulled a face. 'Poor.'

Ron was next, he grinned, commiserating with Neville. 'I got Poor too. I never could figure out what Jupiter's moons were made of!'

Harry smiled. 'I got an Acceptable.'

Ron thumped him on the back. 'Well done Harry! You weren't much better than I was at that one!'

Hermione continued. 'Care of Magical Creatures. Outstanding.'

Neville smiled proudly. 'Exceeds Expectations.'

'Outstanding.'

'Outstanding.'

'Charms. Outstanding.'

'Exceeds Expectations.'

'Outstanding.'

'Outstanding.'

Ginny applauded briefly, knowing that all of them, except Hermione of course, had had some trouble with various charms in the past.

'Defence Against the Dark Arts. Outstanding.'

'Outstanding.'

This time Ron thumped Neville on the back in pride and joined him in shooting a grin at Harry as he replied 'Outstanding.'

'Outstanding.'

Ginny cheered. 'Go DA!'

Ron took up the next on the list and laughed. 'Divinations. Dreadful.'

Neville joined in with a second 'Dreadful.'

Harry smiled at them both and said 'Three cheers for Professor Trelawney and her magnificent teaching. I got a Dreadful too.'

Hermione laughed as Ron blew a raspberry. Ginny grinned and said she was very glad she'd taken their advice and gone in for Ancient Runes.

'Herbology. Outstanding.'

Outstanding,' Neville said, blushing slightly with pride.

'No surprise there Nev! I didn't do too badly, got an Exceeds Expectations.' Neville blushed a bit more at the praise.

'Me too. Exceeds Expectations.'

'History of Magic. Outstanding.'

'Poor.'

'Dreadful. And I don't know how _anyone _could get an O from one of Binns classes!'

'Poor. I was actually surprised to do that well considering what happened. I was expecting a T!'

Hermione smiled at him and continued. 'Potions. Outstanding.'

Neville's grin was almost painfully wide as he said 'Acceptable!' The other three cheered, knowing how very difficult their friend found that particular subject.

'Shows what can happen when you don't have that greasy great bat looming over you!' Ron beamed as he looked around. 'I got an Acceptable too!' There was another round of cheering.

Harry took a deep breath and said 'I don't quite know how but I got…Exceeds Expectations!' The cheers that greeted that remark practically echoed and Harry wouldn't have been surprised if one of the Order members had rushed up to see what on Earth was going on.

'Oh Merlin Harry I wish I could be there to see the snarky gits face when he realises you made it through!' Ron gasped out.

'What about you though Ron, you wanted Potions to be an Auror didn't you?'

'Ah well, I'll just have to move on to my second choice of International Quidditch Star for the Chudley Cannons,' Ron grinned. Ginny muttered something about the chances of becoming an international star while playing for the Cannons under her breath which luckily for everyone escaped Ron's notice entirely. 'And at least I can rest happy in the knowledge that I will never have another lesson with Snape!' As soon as they'd quietened down Hermione began again.

'Well, last but not least Transfiguration. Outstanding.' Her face radiated the pleasure she felt at gaining all O's.

'Acceptable.' Neville said happily, as Transfiguration had never been one of his best subjects.

'Exceeds Expectations,' Ron said, equally happily.

'Exceeds Expectations.' Harry finished with a smile.

Ginny applauded again as everyone smiled round at each other in pleasure and relief that they'd all done so well. Ginny then whipped out her own Hogwarts letter. 'Since you were all determined to keep all this a secret I decided to keep a little secret of my own,' she said as she shook the envelope over her open palm. She held up the badge that fell out for all to see. 'I've been made Fifth Year Prefect!' There were more cheers as they all hugged and congratulated her. 'Now tell me, what have you decided on about these new courses? Mums bound to want to know that too.'

Harry spoke up first. 'Well, I decided to drop Astronomy, Divination and History and signed on for Medimagic, Wandless Magic, Enchantment and the Apparition class.'

'Whoa Harry, that's a fair bit of work you're taking on.' Ron said. 'I decided right away to drop Astronomy, Divination, History and Potions but I wasn't sure about Herbology. I signed up for Medimagic, Wandless Magic, Enchantment and Apparition too though I thought about doing Household Magics as well. I was kind of hovering between Herbology and Household Magic for a while. I mean, Herbology's okay and Household Magic would be a pretty easy course 'cos I know a lot of it from Mum already but in the end I decided not to do either. I mean, last year was hell, mate - and the NEWTs are supposed to be a lot harder. I don't want to overstretch myself.' He seemed surprised that Hermione was looking at him with approval.

'I think that was very wise Ron,' she said. 'I had lot of trouble deciding. I'm still not entirely sure. I decided to definitely drop History and Herbology, since that isn't my best lesson. But I really wanted to do Medimagic, Wandless Magic, Enchantment, Apparition and Ritual Magic. I don't want to end up like I was in third year again and that's just far too much if I'm only dropping two lessons. I'm considering dropping Astronomy, though I don't really want to, or maybe Care of Magical Creatures though I don't want to do that either! It's a really hard choice and even then I'll still be taking on an awful lot. I think I might have a word with Professor McGonagall when she's next here. Or maybe Professor Lupin. What about you Neville?'

'I'm dropping Astronomy, Divination, Potions and History too,' he said. 'I'm taking Medimagic, Wandless Magic and Apparition though I'm thinking about taking Household Magics. I'm not sure. Gran'd want me to take as many NEWTs as I can but I don't want take on too much either.' He looked a little worried.

'I'm sure you'll both make then right choice.' Harry said. 'Why don't you have a little chat with Professor McGonagall too Neville? See what she says before you decide.'

'I might,' Neville said, looking a little happier. He suddenly jumped as there was a knock on the door. It opened and Charlie stuck his head round with a smile.

'You lot done?' he asked. 'Only it's finally gone quiet and I think you'd best take advantage of that while it lasts!' He ushered the three of them quickly down the stairs towards the kitchen door.

Harry was first to reach it, with Neville right behind him as he opened it to see an enormous enchanted banner stating **'Happy Birthday Harry and Neville!'** He jumped as everyone both behind and in front of him shouted _'Surprise!' _

_Definitely,_ he thought. _This is **definitely** my best birthday ever._

_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_


	6. The Party

_Disclaimer: how about I leave you to spot what belongs to me?_

**The Party.**

Harry could hardly believe his eyes. The table was groaning under the weight of Mrs Weasleys cooking, there was _another_ pile of presents sitting on a chair and he was surrounded by smiling people who actually wanted to _celebrate_ his birthday. It was definitely a big difference from how the Dursleys treated his birthdays! He recognised most of the people from the Order, although he wasn't sure about all of their names.

Neville had, naturally, been well aware of the party as he was currently living in Grimmauld Place, though he told Harry later that they had sent their presents as no one had known exactly when he would be leaving Privet Drive. They wanted to be sure he would have presents on his birthday even if the party had had to wait a few days.

Mrs Weasley had apparently been cooking for the last week, so that there would be enough party food ready. Once the headmaster had informed them he was on his way she had had everyone jumping to get it all organised in time.

Apparently Neville hadn't been aware that his friends had made sure that he wouldn't just be sitting there watching Harry open presents. He seemed rather overwhelmed when he realised that he had his own little pile of gifts, bought by the Order and the elder Weasleys. Harry could have sworn his eyes were suspiciously bright as he began unwrapping his gifts. Neville had laughed at the 'Training your Toad' manual, exclaimed over the book on rare magical plants and smiled at the seed organiser and journal. Harry couldn't remember ever seeing him quite so animated.

Harry, for his own part, had been surprised and delighted to receive his own practice snitch, emblazoned with his initials and a miniature lightning bolt, from Alicia, Angelina, Katie and Lee Jordan, who was busy working for the twins now that he'd left school, and had given it to them to pass on.

The Order had bought him a brand new four tier trunk which was charmed so that each level required a specific password as well as the key. Harry had no doubt that that would come in useful, especially as he had finally amassed enough belongings that fitting them all in one trunk was difficult.

Dumbledore had announced that his present to Harry was the rescinding of the lifelong Quidditch ban but had also mentioned in an undertone that he had hidden 'Magics of the Mind: A Study of Legilimency and Occlumency' in the bottom layer of the new trunk.

Harry, although glad to have a proper book on the subject at last wondered whether the secrecy involved was for his benefit or to prevent the Order members from worrying about Voldemort possessing him, like Moody had last year. It wouldn't do, after all, to tarnish their image of the Gryffindor Golden Boy. He forcefully pushed the thought aside with a mental reminder not to be so moody - it wasn't as if he wanted everyone to know about his visions so what did it matter _why _the headmaster was keeping it secret? Besides, he didn't want to spoil his enjoyment of the birthday party.

The headmaster had also handed over Harry's gift from Hagrid, which turned out to be an Owl Care Kit from Eeylops Owl Emporium. It looked rather similar to his broomstick care kit, in a handsome black leather case only it had a silver owl instead of a broomstick on the cover. When he opened it he found a blanket and a towel charmed with warming spells, some grooming tools, a book and a few other useful things.

Opening the book he saw recipes for baking Owl Treats, a chapter on useful potions for owls, even a portrait of 'eminent strigiologist Samuel Williams,' who was apparently there to give advice to owners of sick owls. The case even had a section for a shrunken perch and cage. It was a wonderful gift, and more than made up for the fact that he had also sent a picture of himself and Grawp (who was busy pulling up a tree) in a hand carved frame.

The celebratory atmosphere was incredible and by the time the teens had finished their first helpings of food and gone back for more (and more, and more in Ron's case) the birthday party had degenerated into a more general celebration. Mrs Weasley was positively bursting with pride over the news of Ginny's Prefectship and was over the moon with Ron's OWL marks. Mr Weasley was equally pleased and was busy talking to Ron about what he was planning on taking on at NEWTs.

Hermione was basking in the glow of her Outstandings and was involved in an animated discussion with Bill Weasley, who had been Head Boy at Hogwarts and had done almost as well in his own OWLs.

Charlie and the twins were discussing the continued success of Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes and were joined by Tonks as the talk turned to the newest line of prank products they were considering. Apparently they were thinking of expanding.

The twins had been notorious ever since their first year so there were thirteen years worth of students who had first-hand experience of their particular pranking talents. When added to those students parents, siblings and other assorted family, people who had known their older brothers, people the teachers had complained to about them and those who were just curious they had a pretty big market.

The various Hogwarts legends that revolved around them would make sure new students kept coming through their doors and so they felt that a Hogsmeade store would be a big advantage to the business as well as a great benefit to their most loyal clientele, the students who knew them. The imaginative products would make sure that their customers kept coming back.

Neville had plucked up his courage and somewhat timidly approached his Head of House, who had pointed out that he needed an E to continue with Transfiguration, which he didn't have and so he was happy to sign up for Household Magics, safe in the knowledge that his Gran wouldn't try to sign him up for any more courses.

Harry, having been congratulated and wished a happy sixteenth birthday from almost everyone in the room was sat replenishing his energy with another slice of Mrs Weasleys delicious cake while he chatted with Remus Lupin and Kingsley Shacklebolt.

He did think, for a moment, about what it would have meant to have shared his birthday celebrations with Sirius and the sudden surge of grief had caused a lump in his throat. Lupin had obviously noticed, as he had squeezed Harry's shoulder and handed over another gift, to be opened later, when he was alone. Harry was determined not to spoil the party for anyone and truthfully, it was pretty difficult to remain down in the middle of so many joyful, partying Weasleys. The sadness soon faded again and Harry threw himself back into enjoying the party.

It was many hours later when they finally staggered, exhausted, up to bed. Soon Ron's snores and Neville's deep, even breathing told him that his roommates were asleep. Sitting up in bed he carefully opened Lupin's letter.

_Dear Harry,_

_I know how much you must be missing Sirius right now, and I know how much Sirius would have wanted to be here. I do believe he began planning your birthday party not long after Christmas in fact. I decided not to give this to you with your other gifts as I felt you might want to be alone to open it. I'm not even entirely sure what it is although I do know that he was very excited at the thought of handing it over to you. I have my suspicions._

_If I am right then I would caution you **not** to mention this gift to Mrs Weasley. She wouldn't appreciate it. Now that Sirius is gone the Headmaster is trying to sort out his will but I fear that even with Fudge seeing the error of his ways with regards to Voldemort it will be difficult. _

_I do know what you are going through Harry, better than you might think. You may have lost your Godfather but bear in mind that he was also my best friend. Both of us had too short a time with him, you since discovering his existence and I since discovering his innocence. I wish things could have been different just as much as you do Harry. _

_When Sirius was locked in Azkhaban I'm afraid I destroyed many of the mementos I had of him in my rage over his betrayal. However, some of my school things escaped my anger as they were a reminder of your Father and Peter and the days before Sirius, as I then thought, had turned dark. Days when we did everything together and when they cared enough about a young werewolf to do anything and everything in their power to help me. They gave me some comfort then. I was looking through them again recently and decided to pass this on to you. _

_As Sirius and James were so often in trouble, and with Peter being the easiest of us all to crack, it often fell to me as the most innocent and responsible seeming member of our group, and so less likely to be suspected, to guard our most valuable marauder secrets. I hope that reading this will not only give you some comfort now but will also help reassure you that despite their somewhat arrogant teenage behaviour, neither James nor Sirius were truly bad at heart. _

_Yours Truly,_

_Remus J. Lupin._

Harry wiped away the moisture on his face as he finished reading the letter. Sirius' death was still a somewhat raw wound and although Harry felt that he was beginning to come to terms with his loss he knew he was nowhere near over his grief. Although he no longer raged and screamed and dissolved into tears it didn't take much to bring the feelings welling to the surface again.

At least he had more control over them now than he had at the start of the holidays. The first sharp edge of his feelings had dulled but it still hurt. He opened the battered book that Remus was passing on to him and saw, printed in familiar large, curly writing the title

'_The Magical Mischief Makers Guide to Useful Spells.'_

He turned the page.

'_Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs would like to welcome you, young Mischief Maker, and invite you to share in the many pearls of wisdom we have gleaned from years of dedicated research and experimentation in the field of Magical Mischief. As Masters of our craft we would like to share our knowledge that you may continue to carry out our Great Work. So turn the page and discover some of the secrets of our legendary success…'_

Harry ran his fingers over the writing and smiled slightly through his tears. Then he jumped as Ron snuffled loudly in his sleep. He decided to look at the rest of the book later and slid it beneath his pillow before turning to the envelope addressed to him in his Godfathers writing.

_Hey Harry!_

_Happy Sixteenth! You're probably wondering why I'm slipping you this in secret but it wouldn't do for the other more boring adults to know what I'm giving you, they'd probably try and stop me. I think Moony suspects but he won't give me away. I bet the rest of them will be in uproar when they find out I've given this to you! _

_This, Harry, was my most prized possession when I was your age and I treasured it for years afterwards. Lily used to scream blue murder when I took you up on it and James used to stand there laughing his head off at her. Then he'd generally have to spend ten minutes dodging since she'd lose her temper and start hexing. The only reason I used to escape was by blaming James and using you as my human shield!_

_Actually I think you may have been taken to your Aunt and Uncles on it as well but don't let that put you off. I thought since they've been painting you as a hooligan for years you might as well look the part so I am giving you my old motorbike. Besides you'll probably get a lot more use out of it than this cooped up convict can (try saying that after a few firewhiskeys! Actually don't, I don't want you crashing and hurting the bike…or yourself of course!)._

_If nothing else I'm sure that this'll turn that fat cousin of yours pea green with envy. _

_So enjoy Harry, and here's wishing you the best birthday ever, _

_Love, _

_Sirius._

Harry pulled out the keyring and looked at the keys for a long moment. So those old dreams about a flying motorcycle weren't just dreams after all. He'd have to ask Remus where the bike itself was. The picture on the keyring definitely fit his mental image of a younger Sirius, a little wild, a little reckless, in a black leather jacket leaning against the bike.

He looked again at the keyring and the miniature Sirius waved, mounted the bike and revved the engine with a smile. He couldn't have been more than about 16 in the picture. Turning the keyring over Harry discovered another Sirius, this one with grease on his face, wiping an arm across his forehead as he tinkered with the bike. His wand, Harry was slightly amused to note, was tucked in the back pocket of his jeans.

He really didn't know what he was going to do with a motorbike, other than use it to annoy the Dursleys of course, but he was glad to have it, and the book of spells. In that moment he felt just a little bit closer to Sirius. He yawned widely. He didn't expect to be allowed to lie in bed too late the next morning, not in a household run by Mrs Weasley so he decided that getting some sleep was probably a good idea.

He tucked the envelope from Sirius under his pillow beside the one from Lupin as he lay down and snuggled into the soft warmth of the duvet. With one hand under his pillow and the other by his cheek Harry quickly drifted off, tear stains on his face and a slight smile on his lips.


	7. Summer at Grimmauld Place

**Summer at Grimmauld Place**

Harry was both pleased and relieved to find that Mrs Weasley allowed them to sleep longer than he had expected, although he was still a bit tired when he eventually got up.

Luckily there was nothing in particular planned for the day, since Mrs Weasley had taken advantage of the summer to continue waging war against the dirt and pests that had accumulated in the neglected house. It was finally fit for habitation again, except for one or two rooms that no one had been able to figure out how to get in to.

He spent some time over breakfast, or more accurately brunch, talking about the party with his friends, which then turned to discussing the results of Hermione's chats with Bill and McGonagall. Heart wrenching though it was she had made the decision to drop Herbology, History, Astronomy and Ancient Runes.

'McGonagall said an OWL in Astronomy was all I really needed since it's mainly used in Divination and Herbology and I'm not taking either of those. I mean, the only course I'm doing that I'll actually need it for is Ritual Magics and according to Professor McGonagall all the extra Astronomy I need will mostly be covered in the class.

She said she'd talk to Professor Sinistra about allowing me access to the telescopes and she recommended an advanced book on Astronomy that I'll have to find in Diagon Alley but she said if I had those then I really wouldn't need the class.'

Hermione beamed. 'She said I was smart enough to manage without it.

I've also decided to drop Ancient Runes. I really didn't want to but I would have had far too much to handle if I'd kept it.

Bill said Runes are quite important in some careers, like cursebreaking and research but I did get a really good grade on my OWL and I will be doing some more advanced Runework in Ritual Magics anyway so he doesn't think I'd have _too_ much to make up after Hogwarts if I did decide to take it further.

Hermione paused thoughtfully. 'Maybe I should find an advanced book on Runes too,' she mused.

Harry and Ron shared familiar incredulous looks. Harry had thought he was taking on a fairly heavy load but Hermione always went _way _above and beyond the call of schoolwork. And she was a prefect! And if they continued with the DA then she'd be involved with that too. He didn't know how she did it.

'That's still an awful lot you're taking on though Hermione.' Ron said frankly.

'I know but the only other thing I could possibly give up would be Care of Magical Creatures and I just couldn't do that to Hagrid! Not that it wouldn't be a relief in some ways, I mean can you imagine what he might introduce us to now that we're older and more experienced? Look at what he thought was safe enough for third years!'

They exchanged slightly nervous looks. 'Still,' Ron sighed. 'We can't just give up on him. I doubt he'd have much of a class if we did!'

'Some people might take it as an easy option,' put in Fred as he snatched half a bacon butty off Ron's plate. 'After all some of them will need a certain number of NEWT's or their families will expect them to take plenty when they haven't the grades to get in to some of the other classes.'

'That's what happened in our year, anyway,' George said as he perched on a nearby stool. 'I mean can you imagine the two trolls who hang around with Malfoy getting in to Enchantment? Or even NEWT Transfiguration?' Everyone laughed and George continued.

'But they're _purebloods_ so they'll be expected to stay in school. I doubt they'll even manage to get into Potions, even if it is true that Snape gives extra lessons to his house. No, bet you any money they'll be in lessons like Divination, COMC, Herbology and Household Magics, all the ones that need an A or less.'

From there the talk turned to the new lessons everyone would be taking after the summer.

'Well we took Medimagic, Wandless, Apparition and Enchantment, said Fred. 'We may not have bothered too much about the exams…'

'…but those we did, we did well on!' finished George. 'I always thought it was a pity that we had to make Snape look good by passing but it was an unfortunate side effect of success.'

'And if we'd had a teacher like Lupin for any of the other years…' Fred began.

'Or really bothered studying,' interjected George.

'…then we might have managed an OWL in DADA as well. Still,' Fred continued, philosophically. 'It isn't as if Defence had much relevance to our primary concern at the time.'

'Apparition, well we got our licenses and it's dead useful.'

'Enchanting, well that was just incredible! Absolutely the best lesson we ever took, though if you wind up with Professor Lyon I'll warn you now, he may look a bit absent-minded but he definitely isn't one to cross. He's even worse than McGonagall.'

George grinned across at his twin. 'We learned that the hard way!'

'Not that it stopped us trying, mind you.' Fred replied. 'He works you hard but it's more than worth it.'

'Medimagic, well I won't let on who teaches that but he's a great chap. Dead friendly and he never minds answering questions - it's thanks to him we ever got the skiving snackboxes sorted out.'

'I'll just be grateful,' Harry put in. 'If he teaches me enough to cut down on my Hospital Wing time. Did you know Madam Pomphrey swore she was going to name one of the beds after me as I spend so much time in it?'

Everyone laughed at that and the twins continued.

'Wandless Magic was pretty good but I don't know who they'll get in to teach you since Professor Ranulf spontaneously combusted. Still it was a good course. Dead interesting.'

'Some of its on odd little talents not everyone has but the rest of it isn't too hard once you've got the hang of it.'

'We didn't bother with Magic Maintenance or Household Magic since we figured we'd already know most of it just by growing up as Weasleys.'

'It's pretty lucky really that Mum washed her hands of us after the OWLs otherwise we'd never have heard the end of it, taking so few NEWTs.'

'But it wasn't as if we were interested in taking on too much work.'

'Yeah, we'd never have had any time for Quidditch, or working on Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes, or pranking, you know. The important things in life.'

With that they began to chat about Gryffindors chances for the cup. With Harry back as Seeker and Ginny, who had followed Ron's example in asking for a new broom as her prefect gift, hoping to replace one of the departing chasers.

Charlie joined them briefly to chat about his new job at the Welsh National Dragon Reserve. 'Now that Fudge has admitted You-Know-Who is back they don't really need me making covert contact with foreign wizards, it can be a bit more above board.

It's a bit of a wrench leaving Romania but working with native dragons is good experience. I might see if the McFusty Reserve needs a hand if I have to stay too long.' He shrugged. 'It'll all look good on my CV but once this is over I'm heading back to Romania as fast as I can apparate!'

While Charlie, like Bill had chosen to work in a related field closer to home for the duration of the problems with the Dark Lord it was clear that both of the elder Weasley brothers were missing their old jobs. Harry only hoped they survived long enough to go back to them.

Eventually the younger teens wandered upstairs again, where Ron challenged Harry to a game of Tic Tac Toe, while Neville read the new Herbologists Monthly that had arrived that morning and Hermione helped Ginny with an essay.

After about half a dozen games Ron headed for the kitchen to fetch some drinks and came back to find Harry sat on the floor surrounded by the contents of his trunk.

'I thought I might as well start sorting this out.' Harry said quietly, since Hermione and Ginny were now discussing OWLs and looking over Hermione's notes from last year.

'I'll give you a hand.' Ron said as he sprawled himself out on the floor. 'Have you figured out what you're doing with everything?'

'Well, I thought I'd divide it up, you know, clothes on the top level, then school stuff, then pranks and sweets and stuff then the special stuff like my photo albums and that at the bottom.'

'Sounds like a plan,' Ron said. 'I'll start picking out the clothes and the school stuff since that's pretty easy to spot and I'll pile them either side of me. You concentrate on sorting out the personal stuff and the pranks.'

The pair of them sat, or in Ron's case sprawled, companionably as they picked through Harry's belongings. They managed easily enough, though Ron occasionally paused to check if a certain book was 'school' or 'personal.' Still, it went a lot quicker with two pairs of hands and they soon had four distinct, if not particularly neat, piles. Harry went and fetched his new trunk.

'Right now I've got to turn the key three times to get to the bottom level.' Harry said, glancing at the instructions. He did so and opened the trunk to reveal a section empty except for the book on Occlumency.

'I suppose that had better stay in there for now. Then I fill it.' The pair of them proceeded to do so until Harry was satisfied with the arrangement of his belongings. 'Then I turn the key once to lock that section, place my wand hand over the lock and set the password.' Harry had already decided what the passwords were going to be.

'Prongs,' he said clearly. 'Right, now for the next section.' The third level of the trunk, filled with various prank items and sweets was given the password 'Padfoot' while the next level, containing his school supplies, became 'Moony.' Harry felt that they were highly appropriate passwords. Finally they came to the top level of the trunk where they put the Dursley's awful cast-offs alongside Harry's selection of Weasley jumpers, Dobby socks and the other items of clothing he owned. He gave that level the password Marauders Honour; since there was no way in hell he was using the name Wormtail on any of his belongings.

They surveyed the freshly packed trunk with pride for a moment before Harry said that he should probably have put the trunk by his bed_ before_ they had filled it. When he and Ron both grabbed an end to drag it over with they found it a lot less heavy than they had thought it would be.

'Must have a feather-light charm on it,' said Ron.

'That'll be useful,' Harry replied. 'There were loads of times I nearly injured myself with the old one because it was so heavy.'

After a few moments thought they called the twins in to shrink Harry's old trunk and stuck that in his new one too.

Once that was done there really wasn't anything else much to do. They couldn't go out, or play Quidditch like they did at The Burrow, which was being fitted with extra wards under the supervision of Bill Weasley, just in case. Their homework was done and they really couldn't be bothered to think anything else up. Instead they opened the windows wide to let in the fresh air and sunshine and simply lazed around the room.

Ron sat polishing his broom, Neville was rereading his magazines and filling in some sort of order form, Ginny was showing Hermione how to weave friendship bracelets and Harry was lying on his bed reading his new book on Occlumency. They managed to while away most of the afternoon like that, pausing to make occasional desultory conversation. It wasn't surprising really when a slightly suspicious Mrs Weasley came upstairs to see why they were all being so quiet.

Harry suspected that they were all still a bit tired and they decided to head to bed fairly early. There wasn't even much in the way of the usual bedtime conversations, just quiet goodnights and soon they were all fast asleep.

Nobody could claim that life at Grimmauld Place was a whirl of excitement. It got a bit tedious sometimes, being trapped inside all the time without much to do. Tempers occasionally frayed, but Harry knew it was far better to be stuck with his friends at the Order HQ than to be back with the Dursley's. And they usually managed to find some way to fill their days.

They had spent hours roaming the house, exploring all the rooms. Harry had been incredibly pleased with himself when he discovered a secret passage by himself, even if he had to admit privately that it had been a bit of an accident. It may have only lead to the attic but they rather suspected that they weren't supposed to go up there as it might contain any number of dark artefacts and whatnot. To salve Neville's conscience they informed not one but two adults. Fred and George Weasley.

Hermione had been placated by the promise that they would be_ very _careful, the knowledge that she was far more capable than her age might suggest and by the fact that the Weasley Twins, who had studied Enchantment and so had quite a good idea about how to spot cursed items, and were able to do magic during the holiday, were more than happy to lend a hand. Besides Moody wasn't so far away if they got into any trouble and she was as bored as everyone else. Harry suspected she was still feeling, how had she put it again, 'a bit rebellious.'

If nothing else their discovery gave them somewhere new to poke about. They had hoped to find secret entrances to the other unopenable rooms but hadn't had any luck so far. Harry had eventually thought to ask what had become of Kreacher, not having seen him around.

'We're not entirely sure.' Fred said.

'But we think Lupin might have eaten him,' said George.

Since Hermione was a part of their group they inevitably ended up spending at least an hour or two in the library each day. It wasn't as boring as it might have been. The events that had taken place in the Department of Mysteries and the knowledge that Voldemort was now an active force, no longer hiding his return from the Ministry, had certainly served to motivate their studies somewhat. The Black Library, unsurprisingly, contained quite a lot of books that they felt sure would have been put in the Restricted Section at Hogwarts, if they hadn't been destroyed.

Sometimes they just sat in the library and discussed the DA. Harry felt that it would be pointless to decide for certain what to do about it until after their first week back. By that point he'd have a better idea if the club was still necessary and whether or not he had enough time to run it. It didn't stop them from filling his planner with lessons on curses, charms, counterspells, defences and a variety of other things. Just in case.

There were other everyday aspects of life at Grimmauld Place. Mrs Weasley still had them doing chores, they helped the twins test some of their new products, they played Gobstones and Chess and Tic Tac Toe. Hermione introduced the Weasleys to Cluedo and Monopoly, which Ron was absolutely abysmal at though the Twins took to it quite well and were heard to be planning a possible Diagon Alley version.

They traded card games, Ron, Ginny and Neville showing them wizarding games and Harry and Hermione introducing them to muggle ones. One night they spent hours playing 21, using Every Flavour Beans to make their bets.

There were the odd few truly exciting days. After almost a week of being cooped up in the humid house, coupled with their utter boredom, they were going a little stir-crazy. Even Neville and Hermione. They were also a bit annoyed, as all of the adults were once again closeted away discussing Order business.

Intellectually Harry could reason that no doubt some of the information they were discussing _was_ too sensitive for them to know but nevertheless it still rankled that they were once again excluded. They had a right to know more than they did! Why couldn't there be a junior order or something? Where they could be kept abreast of what was going on even if they couldn't be told everything?

Fred and George were even more put out with the Order. They were legally adults now and they were no longer in school but Mrs Weasley was still doing her best to prevent them from joining. She said they were still too young. The twins were of the opinion that some of the other Order members were also opposing their joining, feeling that they were too irresponsible.

As Fred said angrily 'We may not have been prefects or got a load of OWLs but there aren't many people our age who have set up a successful business. It's not as if we're thick!'

'Maybe it is just a joke shop,' said George 'but that doesn't mean we can't be useful - we invented Extendable Ears after all, in fact we're probably the most original inventors around, despite our age. We could make loads of useful stuff for the Order, I know we could.'

'If we're ever given the chance.' Fred said a trifle bitterly. He turned to the others. 'There's no reason why a joke item can't be funny, useful and profitable - all at the same time. I mean think of the Portable Swamp. Drop one of them behind you in a chase and it'll definitely confuse your enemies! Not so good with fully trained wizards as it would be with Slytherins,' he said wistfully. 'Death Eaters and such can apparate.'

'But our Instant Atmospheres would be dead useful,' George put in. 'We started experimenting for Halloween parties and stuff. You know, crashing thunder, eerie fog and stuff like that. But our first few successful efforts wouldn't be much good for parties. See, the fog was incredibly thick and we had a time working out how to get the look and sound of a storm without getting the rain too.

But think about it. You're trying to hide so why not use the Fog in a Bottle? It's so thick Malfoy probably wouldn't recognise the Dark Lord if he was stood right in front of him! It lasts for hours and it can't be dispelled either - what goods party fog if a careless spell can get rid of it after all? And if you're in an Anti-Apparition Area then a good thunderstorm or snowstorm does wonders for hiding your tracks.'

Ron and Harry were looking at them deeply impressed, even Hermione seemed awestruck. 'They could be quite useful,' she said. 'And they would be marvellous at parties.'

'We know,' they said together.

'We've got all types of weather.' Fred said. 'And we're working on loads of other stuff. They just don't see that our talents can be used for more than just annoying the teachers.'

As was their usual habit, the twins decided to bury their frustration in their pranks and since the others were all in a similar mood they joined in enthusiastically. First they laid a variety of booby traps around the house, just happening to take particular care with the hall outside the door the Order members were meeting behind. They them began to rampage around the house with the twins new Splatterbombs.

About the size of a muggle golf ball the Splatterbombs were each filed with a different coloured paint that had been charmed with a minor jinx. When thrown at someone they would explode on contact, splattering the target and anyone near them with bright colour which would cause them to break out in boils, sprout tentacles, burst out laughing or stagger around on their suddenly unsteady legs.

They teamed up, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville and Ginny against the twins, since the twins had the advantage of being able to use their magics and even apparate. They raced through hallways, up and down stairs, ducking and dodging around corners and furniture, sometimes creeping stealthily and others shrieking with glee. The noise set off Mrs Black but they completely ignored her, apart from the hurling of a few well aimed bombs anytime they passed her, which she didn't appreciate.

They even managed to successfully avoid the adults sent to shut them up once they had left their soundproofed meeting room. This gave them a great deal of satisfaction and proved that they hadn't been wasting their time in getting to know the house so well. From the sounds of it a number of the booby traps had done their work to great effect in the hallway. It was an absolute riot and although they got into a fair bit of trouble off Mrs Weasley for their 'inconsiderate behaviour' and were forced to spend most of the next week clearing up the mess they all privately felt it had been more than worth it.

The other highlight of the holiday had been when the Daily Prophet arrived bearing the headline 'Ministry of Magic Mismanagement: Why Foolish Fudge Should Go!' It seemed that the wizarding worlds faith in Fudge had been severely shaken and there were rumours of a vote of no confidence to be taken. It made all of them intensely happy to know Fudge was on his way out and seemed to give the younger Weasleys a certain malicious satisfaction to think that a new Minister would undoubtedly be replacing Percy Weasley with a member of their own staff.

'He's not going to recover too well from this.' Ron said happily. 'I mean, after all those problems with Crouch and now Fudge on his record, well, I doubt he'll make Minister now.'

Of course there was always the worry about exactly who might end up replacing Fudge. Harry didn't exactly have much faith in the ministry as a whole, since it had managed to produce such stellar examples of humanity as Fudge, Umbridge, Crouch and Bagman. Not to mention the number of Death Eaters who had been trusted and even employed by the Ministry.

He knew there were some decent ones, take Mr Weasley for example, but he couldn't help but think that there could be even worse ministers than Fudge.

'It's possible,' said Hermione thoughtfully. 'But considering the political climate I don't think it's likely. I mean, they've just found out that the Dark Lord is back and they found some pretty trusted friends and members of the ministry helping him. And they see you and Dumbledore as the Wizarding worlds hope again. I don't think they'll risk appointing anyone who's against Dumbledore or who's ever been implicated in the Dark Arts. And I think the Order might have some influence on who's appointed anyway, with things as they are. I don't think we need to worry too much.'

It was logical but Harry had learnt long ago that logic wasn't the driving characteristic of humanity, let alone wizards. But Hermione was still talking. 'I'd guess they'll want someone experienced in working against Dark wizards, a good leader, somebody everyone will respect, and probably someone with a long history in the ministry because they won't want to waste time in training them up.'

As the days passed it seemed that most peoples money was on Amelia Bones to win. The Bones were a well respected pure-blood family with a long history in the ministry and a number of the younger Bones' had been killed in Voldemorts last rise. Amelia Bones herself was a highly respected member of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and a lot of people thought she made the obvious choice to take over as minister.

Everyone at Grimmauld Place began to make a habit of listening to the Wizarding Wireless Network while they were cleaning up after tea so as to keep up with all the news.

Fudge was putting up a bitter fight for his position and attempting to push the blame onto any shoulders other than his own. The interviews where he tried to bluster and make excuses for himself were highly amusing. Really he was only making things worse for himself but evidently he wasn't prepared to just let go of being Minister, he was going to fight tooth and nail to the bitter end. Still, the wizarding public, at least according to the WWN and the Prophet, didn't seem to be buying it.

It was all rather exciting and Harry couldn't wait to find out how it all turned out.


	8. The Perfect Slytherin

**_Authors Note: _**_while my exams are now over I have a lot of coursework that somehow didn't manage to get done that now needs doing. And summer isn't likely to be a picnic for me so as always I make no promises as to an update schedule._

_This chapter serves as** major plot** although I will admit that I still haven't worked out what my plot actually is! _

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**_Disclaimer/Warnings:_**_ from here on in they will only appear when I have something new to say. Otherwise I refer you to the ones in the earlier chapters._

_Anyway, here's the new chapter. Enjoy!_

**The Perfect Slytherin.**

It was a well known fact that Slytherins were superior to all other houses. Slytherins _were_ the crème de la crème of the wizarding world after all: the purest, the richest, quite simply, the best.

Gryffindors were brave, which was simply another way of saying reckless and foolhardy. It wasn't that Slytherins were cowards, because they weren't. They simply had sufficient wits to know exactly when and what action to take in order to achieve the best results for themselves.

Ravenclaws were known for their intelligence but in truth they often failed to see anything which occurred outside the pages of a book.  Slytherins had to function out in the real world, they had far more practical knowledge, and naturally they were unafraid of venturing into potentially profitable areas simply because they were termed 'dark.'

Hufflepuffs, the loyal and hard working. Well, Slytherins had a very deep-seated loyalty, generally to themselves, and perhaps towards their families. As for hard work, it was all very well to work hard if you had no other choice but why make such a drama out of it? It was far more sensible to simply make other people do the grunt work, thus allowing the discerning Slytherin the freedom to work on what couldn't be left to the lesser mortals.

Of course Slytherin didn't have the best of reputations. Why _did_ people assume that an underhanded and power-hungry personality, coupled with a perfectly justified sense of superiority and a certain admiration for the dark arts made someone a bad person?

The answer was, quite simply, the Dark Lords. Who were, quite frankly, a disgrace to the House.

Honestly, if they were truly sneaky then no one would have heard of them now would they? If they were sufficiently cunning then they would be in power now, with the rest of the world none the wiser to the fact that they had been taken over.

He could sympathise with the lust for power, he was, after all, a Slytherin himself. He wanted power as much as the next man, but there were better ways to go about it than to give yourself a ridiculously overblown title, design an ostentatious symbol of your new 'movement' and set out to acquire powerful enemies by attacking everyone who disagreed with you.

In the long run it never worked.

Did these people attend the Gryffindor School of Cunning? Perhaps they had certificates of completion from 'Subtle Scheming for Hufflepuffs'? Or maybe they had had read 'How to Conquer the World in Twelve Easy Steps' and never stopped to think that if the author had known what he was talking about then they'd have recognised the name as the Ruler of the Earth? Besides, what self respecting dictator would write a guide to toppling his own regime?

It wasn't that he didn't respect the other houses for their strengths, because he did, honestly. He was simply exceptionally aware of their many faults.

Slytherins were capable of faults. Not nearly so _many_ of course, but a few, comparatively small, faults.

Although personally he believed that some of them were more faults of society as a whole than of Slytherin House.

Like the issue of trust. Slytherins could be trusted. It wasn't as if the Founders had sat down and said, let's see, we have houses for the brave, the intelligent and the hard-working, do we need anything else? Wait a minute! We'll need somewhere to put the all the **_evil_** eleven year olds. They _do_ make up a quarter of the population you know, wouldn't want to neglect them or anything.

It wasn't as though Gryffindors couldn't be intelligent, look at Granger! Or Ravenclaws hard-working, after all they _were_ the ones who generally put the most effort into their assignments. Or Hufflepuffs brave, alright maybe that _was_ pushing it a little but he was sure there must be one or two. He smirked.

To be fair anyone could exhibit the traits of a rival house. Besides, wasn't it a bit stupid to think that ones personality was completely formed at age eleven and that you would only show one or two personality traits for the rest of your life?

Not that the wizarding world was particularly noted for its capacity to think rationally. You only had to look at last years papers to see that!

Even Slytherins were not immune. Of course they hadn't been fooled by Fudges declarations that the Dark Lord had not returned. They knew he had. They didn't believe that Potter was lying and Dumbledore barmy. Well, not any barmier than usual at any rate.

He had known since the end of the TriWizard Tournament that war was coming, and that choices would have to be made. With the Dark Lords return now public knowledge they wouldn't be able to stand on the sidelines long. Neutrality was never an option against Dark Lords, they tended to have the_ 'if you're not with us, you're against us'_ mentality.

He had to admit that this Dark Lord had at least had the wits to take advantage of the Ministries blindness and the earlier escape by Black to further his own ends for a year but other than that he really wasn't terribly impressive.

_'Purebloods are superior!'_ As if _that_ wasn't already perfectly obvious to anyone with sense.

_'Join me and I shall make you powerful!'_ As if he really _needed _the Dark Lord to make him powerful. He was, in fact, perfectly capable of managing that on his own, and he had every intention of doing so, in time.

_'Let's go up against the strongest wizard in the world in our quest to rid the world of everyone I dislike!'_ Thank you but no. What's the point of having a wizarding lifespan if you aren't alive to enjoy it? Besides, physical torture is just so…_crude_. There are so many more refined methods of revenge, such as abject and sustained humiliation.

No, his methods and his beliefs weren't really all that appealing. He wanted to purge all the Muggleborns. What was the point?

He agreed that noble families and purebloods were naturally superior in some areas, except for those uniquely inbred Slytherin families who only married within other prominent Dark families. Little wonder they ended up producing such stunning examples of the superiority of pure blood as Crabbe and Goyle.  Although that could be the result of interbreeding with Trolls.

Look at Granger as opposed to those two. She was far more powerful. So why waste a perfectly good resource? Muggleborns could be used.

Eliminating them only meant that the purebloods would be forced to do things that would be considered beneath them because there would be no one else around to do them. Far better to use Muggleborns to your own advantage.

As for the Muggles themselves, well, there were just too bloody many of them to simply exterminate. They outnumbered the wizards by millions to one! Yes Wizards had an advantage, Muggle technology wouldn't be much use if they were Imperio'd into turning it on their allies, or simply hit with the killing curse, but sheer weight of numbers would eventually overwhelm the wizards. And even muggles have their uses. Why waste a potential resource?

Besides all that why would anyone choose to entrust their safety to a man who was given a fourteen year set back by a _baby?_

It was, he supposed, possible to overlook the fact that Potter had separated him from his body for so long. After all, _no one_ had ever survived the Killing Curse before; there was no real way he could have been _prepared _for what happened, but what about the rest of it?

He might have managed to avoid Dumbledore's detection for years, launch various fairly subtle attacks on the school under his very nose and still have most of the world believing he was dead. On the other hand, all those attacks _had_ failed. Look at his track record.

He had possessed a teacher in First Year, and was stopped by the combined efforts of three eleven year olds. Alright so he supposed you could argue that you can't expect too much of a simple spirit.

What about Second Year then? Okay, so he was essentially a sixteen year old memory. And Enchanted objects do come with inherent weaknesses. Nevertheless he had had a bloody basilisk! Defeated again, this time by a twelve year old and a phoenix. There was some rumour about the sorting hat being involved and something about a sword but he really wasn't sure where they had come in.

So he could maybe excuse the first three, note that, _three_ attempts on Potters life. Third Year saw Blacks escape but nothing from the Dark Lord. Fourth Year he was _resurrected_ and still Potter got away! Perhaps he _wasn't_ at his best having just crawled out of his cauldron (yes he _had_ read the interview in the Quibbler) but _how,_ how in the name of Merlin, could anyone possibly excuse his last attempt?

He'd had a year to recover from being brought back, a year to plan and build up his strength. He had a number of Death Eaters, his inner circle of powerful wizards, highly trained in the Dark Arts. And the whole lot of them were given the run around by a bunch of fifteen year olds. Didn't that seem just a bit ineffectual for a Dark Lord? Maybe a tad _pathetic_ even?

Voicing such a comment in the Dungeons would probably end in a _very_ nasty accident that would be blamed on someone else, precisely the reason he had never voiced such opinions among his housemates

Of course such repeated failure didn't stop the more moronic students from wishing to follow him, but it was more than enough to persuade him that joining up would not be in his best interests.

Not that he had any intention of joining with the Ministry either, mind you.

One day he intended to be Minister for Magic but after the display of sheer bureaucratic incompetence they had treated the wizarding world to in the past year he had absolutely no intention of trusting his safety to them.

They had alienated their most powerful allies, pissed off other potential allies (that werewolf legislation for example), ingratiated themselves with the Dark Lords minions (Malfoy had _owned _the Minister) and topped it all off by allowing the Dark Lord to simply waltz into the most important parts of the Ministry itself before they would concede that he had, in fact, returned. No way was he putting his life in their hands. He had the distinct feeling that they'd drop it.

So who else was there? Dumbledore? He _was_ the only wizard the Dark Lord had ever feared. He was certainly very powerful. He even made the Dark Lord turn tail and run in the Ministry, so he would seem a good choice. Nonetheless he had to admit he had reservations.

Maybe Dumbledore_ was_ capable of outfighting the Dark Lord, but the Dark Lord wasn't really the sort to generally favour a nice open fight. At least in that way he showed a little of the Slytherin cunning. And Dumbledore had shown an unfortunate tendency to be out thought.

The Dark Lord may never have been able to _defeat _him but he'd certainly managed to out-manoeuvre him.

One of his teachers had been possessed by the Dark Lord and another one had been a Death Eater in disguise and Dumbledore hadn't even seemed to notice. He had been removed from the school_ twice_ during times of crisis, leaving others to deal with Umbridge and the Basilisk. Clearly he wasn't as on top of things as he liked to make out.

So who to support in the coming war? Neutrality wasn't an option, and there were serious drawbacks to the Dark Lord, Dumbledore and the Ministry. Which really only left him with one choice: Potter.

Of course, it wouldn't be as simple as just walking up and declaring his newfound allegiance. Potter had shown enough Slytherin traits that he felt safe in saying that the Gryffindor would be more wary than that. Besides, hadn't one of the Ravenclaws betrayed his little Defence group? He was going to be a lot more cautious after that.

If he was lucky he had time. His family were often overlooked, they weren't considered influential enough for the Dark Lord to pay too much attention to them and they weren't as confrontational as many of the Slytherins so the Light didn't see them as so dangerous they needed watching.

He grimaced suddenly. The attitude of many of his year mates fell far short of traditional Slytherin standards.

Look at his Head of House. The man was, according to which rumours you listened to, a highly ranked Death Eater who served as the Dark Lords eyes and ears within the school or a close friend of Dumbledore's who had risked his life as a spy in the enemy ranks. He was called a double agent but both sides seemed to feel they had his ultimate loyalty. Did any of them know for sure?

On the other hand look at the self styled Slytherin Prince. Malfoy had been mouthing off since first year about his desire to serve the Dark Lord. He tormented the most important children on the light side, openly called Muggleborns 'Mudbloods,' made no secret of the fact that he reported everything that went on at the school to his father, boasted of his families ties to the Dark and relished each and every misfortune suffered by the headmaster and his friends. Had the boy never heard of subtlety?

Merlin, but Malfoy was as easy to read as a Hufflepuff!

Not that it was so very surprising, his father was much the same way although perhaps not _quite_ so open in his allegiances. Of course he had been _suspected_ of being Dark but with him it had been a matter of rumour. Some_ 'dubious'_ acquaintances, a few _'questionable'_ dealings.

Everyone may have _known_ but he had never been so outright in his support for the Dark that anything could really be _proved_.

At least not under the sort of Ministry that the wizarding world had had to cope with since Dumbledore had turned down the post of Minister.

If you wanted to alert people to the fact that you most emphatically weren't on their side then what better way than to attend the school they run and shove the fact in their faces daily? And then have your father openly plotting against them from outside the school.

It was obvious that the Malfoys had inherited all the brains and ability to reason traditionally attributed to their _hair colour!_

Not that many of his other year mates were much better. Crabbe and Goyle (there was no plain Crabbe or just Goyle, the two were inseparable) reminded him of the Greek Myth with the three crones who shared a single eye and tooth between them. He was fairly sure those two were sharing a brain cell.

People whose main form of communication seemed to be grunts did not embody the sort of dangerously sharp intellect that Slytherin was said to have possessed. It truly was a shame that the house values had fallen so far. He suspected they only got in because they were from two of the oldest pureblood families. Even if they were inbred long past the point of imbecility.

Parkinson? She was only tolerated because her father was so very rich. In pureblood circles she was still little more than a jumped up cit, aping her betters, because her family certainly wasn't as pure as they made out. She tried_ very_ hard to conceal that fact however, looking down on everyone, slavishly following the guidance of the 'best' of the pureblood families, in other words acting as Malfoys lapdog. Appropriate really, considering her looks. Or lack thereof.

Bulstrode? The feminine form of Crabbe and Goyle, thick as swamp water. Davis? Greengrass? They were as much Parkinson's toadies as Crabbe and Goyle were Malfoys. Always following her about, laughing shrilly at all her jokes, dancing attendance on her. Pathetic. They want to be _just like her_, Merlin knows why.

No matter how pure their bloodlines or how packed their vaults he just couldn't see them as 'proper' Slytherins. They had too few brains.

The only other member of his Slytherin year mates that he considered worth a damn, besides himself, was Theodore Nott. He smiled fondly. Nott was underestimated by everyone, including his own family, who were in deep with the Dark Lord. He felt sure they would eventually pay, dearly, for the way they'd treated him.

None of the others had an ounce of true house pride or the wit to see that _serving_ the Dark Lord meant just that, you were considered his_ servant_, or, perhaps more accurately, his slave.

He'd heard the stories, about how his followers were punished for 'mistakes.' Hardly something to aspire to really, having to ask permission and justify all your actions to your _Master_. It wasn't his idea of power. He wasn't the type to beg, or grovel, or serve really. He wanted to be the one in charge. _That_ was his idea of ambition.

Not that he was ever going to become a Dark Lord. Trying to take over the world had never worked and he wanted to be able to bask in his power, to enjoy it, not spend his life fighting for it. Which was why he intended to take over the Ministry. It wasn't as if he could possibly be a worse Minister than the one they'd got!

Of course he wouldn't have the chance until the Dark Lord was defeated which brought his thought back to Potter. He had the regrettable Gryffindor habit of rushing into things without thinking them through but he had displayed hints of the Slytherin mindset.

He could do with someone to help him nurture that, like a Slytherin adviser to help him on his way to greatness. He felt sure there would be benefits to taking on such a job. If he was going to be joining the light then he might as well get something out of it.

Potter did not enjoy the limelight. If Potter won, and he had certainly given the Dark Lord a good run for his galleons so far, then he felt sure that he would ensure that all those who helped him were recognised, if only to take the focus off him! The Gryffindor just didn't seem to want the glory and recognition that came with his fame.

Being friends with the Boy-Who-Lived certainly wouldn't hinder his career if he did end up vanquishing the Dark Lord. There was also the chance that Potter would be more reasonable than most when it came to those things which were classified as 'dark.'

He had befriended a werewolf, and a half-Giant, and stuck by them when things got tough. He was a Parselmouth himself as well as being Muggle raised so he didn't have quite the same prejudices as many in the wizarding world. He felt sure he could make him see the difference between 'dark' and 'evil.'

Zabinis were _dark_, like any good Slytherin, but they were hardly evil. They were in fact one of the most consistently overlooked of the pureblooded families, both within the Snake House and outside. And that was just how they wanted it.

Blaise wasn't sure if the ability to fade into the background was just the product of centuries of good Slytherin genes or whether it was in fact the result of intermarrying with an extremely prominent Vampire family up in the Carpathian Mountains.

Power, to Zabinis, was power. It didn't matter too much where you got it from. Too many Slytherins neglected opportunities for gain because they weren't strictly wizarding. Most wouldn't be seen dead investing in the muggle world because they saw muggles as so inferior.

So did Zabinis to be perfectly honest but they also saw them as an exploitable resource to be taken advantage of. Which had earned the Zabini family a great deal of money over the years. People like the Parkinson's underestimated the Zabini wealth because a significant portion of it was in Muggle accounts. Even more gold was tied up in other countries.

Families like the Malfoys hid their non-wizarding blood like a dirty little secret. It was no secret that there was Veela blood in the line somewhere, and there were even rumours in the Dungeons that there may have been an Ice Demon in the family tree too. They just didn't seem to realise that this opened up new realms of influence, new roads to power for them.

They were too blinded by the mere fact that they were wizards to see that they were…what was the muggle phrase again? Ah yes, big fish in a small pond. Zabinis weren't satisfied with that. Why stick to one pond when you could have influence in many?

And they were achieving it too. There were Zabinis all over the world, with the ears of many powerful people. They were powerful in the wizarding world but they were subtle about it. The slim build, olive complexion and dark good looks characteristic of the line came from generations of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese ancestors. Zabinis did not limit their ambition to one sphere, or one country.

Their influence reached far further than most families, who limited their influence to one or two countries at best. The Malfoys had ancestral ties with France and 'professional contacts' in certain areas of Eastern Europe but that was about it. They limited their power to a rather small pond. Zabinis didn't.

His own sister was studying at the Grande Palazzo School of Magic in Venice and his younger brother was contemplating a school in Prague. Some of his more Vampiric cousins attended Durmstrang while his squib cousin Elliot was exceptionally proud of making it into Oxford.

Unlike most pureblooded families the Zabinis did not cast off the few squibs they produced. Instead they were encouraged to marry other squibs of good standing and then sent to make their way in the Muggle world, since they would otherwise have been forced to take the same sort of menial work that Filch did. And Zabinis were above that sort of thing.

With the support of the family they were able to indulge their own ambitions, becoming lawyers, politicians, investment brokers. It had been a lot more profitable than the usual disinheritance then ignoring of the problem favoured by the other purebloods.

Of course, such blindness could work in his favour now.

The scions of the more prominent Slytherin families didn't bother courting his favour, supposing that a Zabini wasn't quite pure enough or rich enough to be important. They were going to find out it was dangerous to underestimate a true Slytherin. And he was pure, and rich, and dark enough to be accepted among them, which gave him a distinct advantage in the game he was choosing to play.

Meanwhile the rest of the wizarding world, more concerned about the more prominent Slytherins, tended to overlook the quiet, passive and non-confrontational Zabini family. Blaise was glad he had continued the tradition, not being too enthusiastic a member of the Inquisitorial Squad or too heavily involved with the tortures Malfoy and Parkinson were forever dishing out to other students.

He was one of the least objectionable Slytherins and so felt sure that not only could he offer his services in the knowledge that they would be useful but also that he was unlikely to be hexed on sight. Winning over the other students and keeping his activities secret from his own House, on the other hand, was not going to be easy.

Of course he couldn't risk moving too fast and possibly blowing his chance with Potter. He would have to go slowly at first, win his trust a little, but he thought Potter would be smart enough to see the advantages, the_ possibilities_, in having him as an ally. Meanwhile, hopefully, the other Slytherins would continue to see him as an unimportant member of their own and so would never even suspect what he was up to. Until it was too late of course.

He just hoped the Dark Lord gave him enough time.

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_Well, this is a redone version that I think works a whole lot better than the last, hope you all agree. _

_Thanks as always to my reviewers:_

**_Kjkit:_**_ thanks for the encouragement! I'll get there in the end. x_

**_Jemma Blackwell:_**_ hopefully I answered all your questions in the email (which I re-sent!) but it's always good to get a review that makes you think and helps advance the story. Yours definitely did that so thanks again!_

**_Nphipps:_**_ glad you enjoyed it, as you can see I'm not letting a little thing like my finals get in the way of my fic…even though I really should!_

**_Tansy1354:_**_ I'm glad you enjoyed it. Neville's definitely going to have a big part to play and the motorbike will definitely reappear later, though I'm still working on a major plot for it to be part of. As for the lessons, well, I'm having a lot of fun with those!_

**_Lady Melime Alasse_**_: it is certainly heading in that direction. Everyone underestimates them even though they've proven that they're capable. Now they want to take things into their own hands. It's their future and I'm making sure they have more of a say in it. Hope you stick around for more! _

_Well that's it for the next little while, I'll try and update again fairly quickly once the rest of my exams are done. Next chapter should have Diagon Alley and the new Minister, depending on length it may even see them heading back to Hogwarts. _

_I look forward to hearing what you thought and any other ideas about the story. Wish me luck!  T.T.F.N._


	9. Standing Your Ground

_Authors Note: First off, profuse apologies for it taking so long – I'm so, so sorry! Grovels I said it wasn't going to be a fun summer, and I was right. I had a lot of Uni work to get through, which I did and I ended up with a **2:1** on my degree which made me **really happy**. Still, it didn't leave me a lot of time for writing, or doing much else really! I also had a little bit of writers block for this chapter but once I got over that the thing just kept on growing! It's quite a long chapter so hopefully that'll make you feel a bit better about the wait. I did try to get this out earlier but I just got a new job – early mornings and long days, I've been absolutely knackered! Still, at least its out now. _

_This one goes out to **Japonica**, for persistence- hopefully it'll be worth the wait!_

**Standing Your Ground**

Harry was woken up, as usual, by his owl – he was convinced she had been a mother hen in a previous life. She had to have been.

At the Dursleys she had often sat on his battered old alarm clock and hooted, erm, hinted, that it was about time he got some sleep. However, being an owl, she had absolutely no problems with a nocturnal Harry and so her hints didn't always correspond to what might be considered a normal timetable.

He couldn't count the times she'd flown over to him with a half-finished essay or a Potions book in her claws as a gentle reminder that he shouldn't be putting them off, although Harry personally felt that he was pretty conscientious about doing his homework. Or at least the parts that weren't set by Snape.

Once she had even swooped down and grabbed 'Flying with the Canons' right out of his hands and refused to give it back until his research into the Babbling Brew and its importance in the creation of Truth Serums was done. He hadn't gotten in back for three days!

When he ate up in his room, something he tried to do as often as possible in order to escape Dudleys atrocious table manners and his Aunt and Uncles scowls, she always carefully examined how much food he was given and always kept an eye on how much he ate.

If she ever figured out a way, he fully expected her to tuck him in and cook him breakfast in the morning!

Still, Harry didn't mind, Hedwig had been his constant companion ever since the summer before he started Hogwarts and he loved his faithful pet to bits.

He stretched his arms above his head, then groped around on the bedside table till he found his glasses and put them on. Smiling, he reached out to ruffle her feathers affectionately. 'I'm up Hedwig, honest,' he yawned.

Now that they were out of the Dursleys the Snowy Owl had decided to do her bit to ensure that he ate properly by making sure that he was up in time for breakfast. It wasn't as if Mrs Weasley would ever allow people to laze the day away under _her_ roof, or in any way, shape or form allow anyone to go hungry.

Especially not Harry, as she was of the opinion he was far too thin for a growing boy and was determined to feed him up. Harry sometimes wondered privately how on earth her sons had avoided growing to Dudley's size, especially considering how much food the Weasley men were capable of packing away in one sitting.

Still, he appreciated his owl's efforts, and so dutifully got up when she decided it was time. Besides, she was an exceptionally intelligent bird and knew when her 'chick' needed his sleep.

Harry stumbled out of bed and staggered in the direction of the bathroom while his owl eyed Ron speculatively. She was obviously debating whether or not to try waking him up too. By the time Harry returned, feeling much more awake after a quick shower, his best friend was sat on the side of his bed getting dressed, while his owl was back on her perch looking decidedly smug.

'I get enough of this from Mum,' Ron complained with a sleepy glare at Harry. 'Without your ruddy owl getting in on the act!'

'Look on the bright side, at least you'll be first down for breakfast this morning. You'll get first dibs on the bacon for once,' Harry replied, knowing the effect that the mention of food would have on his friend.

Ron brightened noticeably and immediately headed for the bathroom. 'Good point!'

As it turned out they weren't the first ones to reach the kitchen table. Mrs Weasley was busily bustling around the stove, frying up eggs and bacon and tomatoes while a clearly exhausted Remus Lupin was slumped in his seat attempting to focus on the Daily Prophet.

'Professor Lupin!'

The werewolf raised his head and blinked sleepily at them as he remarked mildly 'One year. I was your professor for _one year_ only, quite some time ago at that, yet it seems I am never likely to escape the title.' Mrs Weasley placed an overlarge mug of coffee in front of him and he smiled. 'Bless you Molly.'

'So where have you been?' asked Ron as he sat down and began helping himself to bacon and sausages.

'We haven't seen you since the night of the party,' added Harry. 'Was it anything to do with Voldemort? He's been awfully quiet lately.'

Mrs Weasley winced slightly at the name while Ron paused in shoveling down his breakfast. Amber eyes met emerald in a long, considering stare. He seemed to find what he was looking for as he finally sighed slightly and leaned back in his chair.

'Understand, Harry, I cannot tell you everything,' he began.

'Remus!' exclaimed Mrs Weasley hotly. 'How dare you...'

'Molly,' he said seriously. 'They are hardly children any longer, they deserve at least some of the truth! And we've all seen that too little information can be just as harmful as too much.'

It was Harry's turn to wince.

'As I was saying, I cannot tell you everything. It would be far too dangerous. For you, for me, for the Order, the people I've been dealing with and potentially for the war itself. You _must_ begin to understand that knowledge can have dangerous consequences. We do not generally choose to keep things from you merely for our own amusement.'

Harry nodded seriously and he continued. 'Despite everything that happened, the night at the Department of Mystery was a huge blow to Voldemort. He lost his main advantage, the Ministry's disbelief of his return, he failed to take the prophecy he wanted and you once again escaped his grasp. Most importantly, however, he lost a significant proportion of his Inner Circle.

Malfoy and the others were some of his most loyal and experienced Death Eaters. You took out, for lack of a better term, many of his generals and left him with mostly raw recruits.

The headmaster feels that he may at first have hoped that public opinion would not have swung back in your favour so very quickly, giving him more time to plan, but obviously that didn't work out. We think he is probably concentrating on retrieving his followers and possibly making some grand gesture against the wizarding world to mark his return.

That is as much as I will say on the subject and while I don't doubt that you will share this information with the others I expect all of you to content yourselves with that. Make no mistake boys, I will _not_ be pleased should I find out that you have been trying to learn more.'

The werewolf's tone was level but there was no mistaking his feelings on the matter. Both boys nodded seriously.

'I have most recently been to America, for the Order, doing much the same thing as your brother did in Romania,' he said, glancing at Ron. He turned back to Harry. 'Voldemort is not likely to be content with simply the Giants and Dementors as allies. It was hoped that I could provide an, ahhh, _unique_ viewpoint on the benefits of joining the light.'

'The werewolves,' Harry realized. 'You've been talking to the werewolves.' He shot him a concerned look. 'I hope you had better luck than Hagrid did with the giants.'

Ron looked up suddenly. '_You_ didn't find any long-lost brothers and hide them around the place somewhere did you?'

Lupin laughed, having heard a great deal about Grawp over the course of the holiday. 'No,' he smiled, then sobered slightly. 'They listened, at least, but the British stance on lycanthropy hasn't done us any favours.'

Ron scowled. 'I bet loads of it was that cow Umbridges fault. Wish we could've fed her to Norbert or something.'

'Ronald Bilius Weasley!' his mother said sternly. 'I will not have that sort of language under my roof!'

Harry broke in, scowling even more fiercely than Ron. 'She deserves to be called a lot worse than that Mrs Weasley. And personally I'd like to give her to Fluffy as a chew toy!'

'Thestrals,' said a cool voice from the doorway. 'Considering how afraid she is of horses, and the forest, I think tying her to a stake there and leaving her for the Thestrals to find would be...fitting.' She paused a moment to consider. 'At night.'

'Hermione!' Mrs Weasley gasped, looking at her in wide-eyed shock.

She walked over to the table and sat down. 'It's the least she deserves,' she said firmly. The boys nodded. Mrs Weasley simply stared at the three of them, speechless. Remus raised an eyebrow and pushed the newspaper forward.

'You might just be pleased at this then,' he said, tapping the front page. The headline screamed 'Undersecretary Umbridge to Answer for Crimes.' 'It seems Fudge is trying to pin much of the Ministry's misdeeds on your former teacher.'

Ron sneered. 'Fudge is trying to pin the blame on anyone except himself. Did you hear that interview when he blamed Harry and Dumbledore for not being convincing enough?'

Hermione had quickly skimmed the report and let out an unladylike snort. 'Ha, as if she did all _that_ without the Ministers knowledge and support.' She sniffed. 'It doesn't even mention her _real_ crimes.'

'Like that bloody quill of hers,' Harry said darkly, rubbing at the faded white lines on his hand.

'What about when she authorized whipping for Fred and George?' asked Ron

'Whipping!' exclaimed Mrs Weasley.

'What about when she sent those dementors after you Harry?' said Ginny as she entered the kitchen. Neville, who was right behind her gave a glare that was almost worthy of Snape, and completely at odds with his usual placid demeanor as he said 'Or attempting the Cruciatus Curse on you.'

There was a moments shocked silence, which was broken as Remus Lupin slowly leaned forward in his chair and fixed them all with an incredibly sharp stare. Ginny actually gulped as he asked softly 'what was that you just said?' Remus Lupin was not a man much given to shouting or other loud and expressive demonstrations of anger. Instead he tended to get very, very quiet and very, very polite. It was quite unnerving.

It was at times like this that you could see the wolf behind the usually gentle amber eyes. This time Harry could almost swear he heard its silent snarl of rage behind the abnormally soft timbre of his professor's voice.

'Umbridge is a toad.' Harry said, still looking at the faintly legible marks, which spelled out 'I will not tell lies.'

'She especially hated me, saw me as a 'threat to the ministry.'' He laughed shortly, but it was completely devoid of humour. 'She sent those dementors after me, that day on Privet Drive, wanted me out of Hogwarts for good. Dunno what she'd have done if I'd been kissed, she couldn't claim _that_ was due to my overactive imagination and attention-seeking personality. When she became a teacher she went out of her way to make my life hell.'

He rubbed at his hand again. 'I must have had more detentions with her than the rest of the school put together, her and that bloody quill. She had me 'writing lines.' Hagrid told Malfoy once that lines weren't much of a punishment but then he probably wasn't thinking of using a quill that actually carves the words into your hand.'

He fell silent and Ron suddenly spoke up. 'Lee had one. I think the twins might have had a couple but you know them, they don't usually get caught. 'I will not disrespect authority' it said.'

'Dean had one too,' added Ginny. 'For saying werewolves weren't all bad. 'I will not question authority.' Luna said a few of the Ravenclaws got that one too, for pointing out when she was wrong in class.'

'Ernie MacMillan had one for questioning the fairness of having an Inquisitorial Squad,' said Hermione. 'But _most_ people stepped pretty carefully to avoid getting any more.' She sounded as if she wasn't sure whether to despair of Harry for not having the sense to avoid antagonizing her, or be proud of his actions.

'But having us write in our own blood wasn't quite enough for her,' Harry continued. 'After the twins pulled that stunt with the swamp they were caught. She gave Filch the authorization to whip them. He was ecstatic, finally having the chance to use those chains he loves so much.'

Mrs Weasleys eyes were as round as saucers. It was clear that the twins had glossed over one or two things when they told her about why they'd suddenly abandoned Hogwarts.

'She was convinced I was hiding something. Dumbledore's location, or the weapon he was planning on using against the Ministry, some big secret. She slipped a whole vial of Veritaserum into my tea once, asked where he and Sirius were hiding.'

'You never told us that!' said Ron.

'A whole vial!' Hermione gasped. 'That kind of dose could cause permanent mental damage, and that's only if it didn't prove fatal!'

Harry continued on as if he hadn't heard them, his gaze fixed into the distance. 'The day, the day I had my vision,' he stumbled, swallowing hard. 'The day I contacted Kreacher in the fire,' his fists clenched, knuckles turning suddenly white, 'she caught me. She ordered Snape to give her Veritaserum but he said she'd used the lot on me the last time, he didn't have anymore. He said poisoning me wouldn't do much good, it would give him some satisfaction, he said, but none of them would give her enough time to get the truth out of me. So she decided I needed to be 'encouraged' to talk. She thought the Cruciatus would loosen my tongue a little,' he trailed off, still staring into space. He sighed and blinked, bringing his focus back to the present. 'In a way I could have understood it better if she'd been a death eater but she wasn't. Sirius, Sirius once said the world wasn't made up of good people and death eaters. I guess he was right. She's one of the few people in the world I'd like to feed to a bunch of Dementors.'

The adults were silent, obviously horrified by this recitation of events.

'Someone ought to feed _her_ to a basilisk,' said Ginny, and Harry was pleased to see how casually she could mention the horror of the Chamber of Secrets. He knew she had had nightmares about it for quite a while, but she was a much stronger person for having come through it. Harry could barely remember the stuttering girl she had once been around him.

'Whatever those centaurs did to her, she deserved it and more.' Neville said bleakly. 'Dumbledore should have just left her there.'

'Harry suddenly smiled. 'Of course then we'd have missed Peeves escorting her out of Hogwarts.' Neville and Ginny grinned at the memory.

'And we missed it, stuck up in the hospital wing,' Ron groused. 'Still, those pictures Colin sent you were bloody funny.'

Hermione looked up from the picture of Umbridge on the front page and gave Harry a significant Look. 'Rita Skeeter,' she said, laying the slightest of stresses on the name, 'is certainly putting her own vicious pen to better use these days.'

Harry's eyes narrowed slightly and he gave her a barely perceptible nod. Ron looked over at the two of them as he caught on. 'Yeah, just imagine what she could do with the _real_ story.'

Remus opened his mouth to say something but Hermione swiftly changed the subject. 'What were you saying about werewolves and America?' she asked. 'They're treated a lot better over there aren't they?'

Remus shut his mouth with a distinct click, eyes still hard and angry. He allowed himself to be diverted but not before exchanging his own significant look with a clearly distraught Mrs Weasley. Harry would have bet any number of Galleons that their conversation was going to be the main topic of a heated Order meeting as soon as one could possibly be called.

'America may make much of their Equal Rights policies,' Remus was saying 'but truthfully, it isn't as different as you might think.

Young werewolves do have a right to magical learning and there is a Werewolf Affairs Committee in the Magical Congress which gives them at least a small voice in the running of the magical community but known werewolves are still treated as second-class citizens by most of the populace.'

He changed the subject abruptly, asking how they felt about beginning their NEWT studies. Hermione, naturally, was ecstatic, and began talking with great enthusiasm.

'It's all _very_ exciting, especially the new lessons, they sound so interesting! I can hardly wait. I just hope the booklists come soon though or I'm never going to be prepared for the first lessons! I'm just glad I got all my homework out of the way already.'

Ron snorted. 'As if there was any chance of _you_ leaving your homework till the end of the holidays. You start getting twitchy if you put it off for more than five minutes!'

The other Gryffindor's laughed, while the adults smiled. _Everyone_ knew about Hermione's obsessive study habits.

Remus decided to distract her from glaring at a completely oblivious Ron by asking about her homework.

'I wouldn't have thought you would be given that much. Not at the end of your OWL year.'

'Well Snape set everyone something just 'cos he's an evil git,' said Ron.

'_Actually_ Ron, I think it's done to _prepare_ the students starting the NEWT course so that they're ready to get started right from the very first lesson.' Hermione's tone of voice made it clear that she thought this was a very sound idea.

'That doesn't explain why _everyone_ has to do it, _everyone_ isn't taking potions!'

'Yes, but there might be more people like Harry, who didn't really expect to get in and now they'll be ready.'

'What about people like Neville who never wants to see another cauldron in their lives then? Why do they have to do it?'

Hermione looked momentarily stumped and Neville quickly stepped into the momentary lull to end the argument.

He looked at Ron. 'Like you said, Snapes a git. I bet he never even bothers reading the ones from people who don't get into his NEWT class.'

Hermione started to interrupt but he turned to her and continued, saying '_and_ it prevents them from doing more productive studying. Like for the classes they're actually taking.'

Hermione closed her mouth and looked thoughtful. Harry sent Neville a discreet thumbs up and took up the conversation.

'The rest of it's mainly Umbridge's fault. After the exams we're supposed to have some 'bridging' lessons or something, to prepare for next year. That's not easy when you your Transfiguration teacher's in St Mungos, your CoMC teacher is on the run and everyone else is being watched so they don't step out of line and end up fired like your Divinations teacher!'

'Even when Dumbledore came back everyone was so distracted and so busy trying to sort things out that not a lot of actual teaching got done,' Ginny added.

'Instead they went and lumped us with extra homework,' finished Ron, morose.

'Professor?' began Hermione. 'Do you know why we were offered all these extra NEWT's? I mean, I thought they only offered NEWT's in OWL subjects.'

'That is how it usually works,' he replied. 'but it isn't always the case. The headmasters of most magical schools have a great deal of leeway in deciding what subjects to offer. For example, Headmaster Dumbledore was considering dropping the teaching of Divination altogether at one point...'

'Wish he had,' Ron muttered.

'...While most American schools have compulsory Muggle Studies from first year. Generally though, OWL's are limited to the same sort of subjects that you were offered. Hogwarts, and most other schools, then offer the same set of subjects at NEWT level, along with a number of BAT's.'

'BAT's?' asked Harry, looking blank.

It was clear that Lupin was enjoying acting as a professor again as he continued with his explanation.

'Basic Aptitude Tests, a sort of taster course, allowing you to explore new areas and perhaps help you decide on your future career paths.

For example you might be offered Alchemy as a BAT's course and enjoy it so much you decide that's what you want to do with your life or you might hate it passionately and give up on your idea of being a famous Alchemist. That's the thinking behind them anyway.

And they always look good on a CV. Someone wanting to enter St Mungo's as a trainee Healer who not only had all the required NEWT's but had also taken Medimagic at BAT level would obviously stand a better chance than someone who only had the required NEWT's.

It's left up to the schools to decide what to offer, though it often depends on what subjects they can find teachers for of course.

However, every so often, generally when there is some sort of crisis, the school offers full NEWT level courses instead of BAT's. Then the workload is somewhat heavier, and the lessons taken a lot more seriously.

I believe that the last time they were offered was during Voldemort's last rise.'

What did you take?' asked Harry eagerly.

'Why didn't the Headmaster offer them last year?' queried Hermione.

'I,' Remus smiled reminiscently. 'Took Dueling, Medimagic and Enchantment, as did Sirius and James. They also took Ritual Magics but I decided against joining them there – it would have been a trifle suspicious if I had to miss all the ones which required the full moon.

As for why Dumbledore failed to offer the extra NEWT's after the events of the Triwizard Tournament you would really have to ask him, though I would venture to guess that he was trying not to further antagonize the Ministry.'

'Quite right, dear boy,' said the Headmaster himself as he walked into the kitchen beside Mrs Weasley. Harry had been so caught up in the discussion he hadn't even noticed that she'd left. He wondered if the headmaster had come for any particular reason or if Mrs Wealey had fire-called him and insisted on a meeting.

He sat down and conjured up a purple tea set with yellow polka dots before he continued. 'Cornelius would have been most annoying if he had thought I was moving against him, as he later proved, in fact. And it was not a time when I felt I could afford the distractions he would no doubt have caused.

I did, however, have a few words with the teachers to ensure that they, ah, 'pushed' the students a little further than is customary for a mere BAT's course.' He took a sip of the steaming brew and smiled.

'Ah, Lemon Tea, nothing better for a bit of pep in the mornings. Does anyone care for a cup?'

Everyone shook their heads.

'How come we weren't offered Dueling?' asked Ron suddenly.

The headmaster eyed him over the rim of his teacup and smiled, his blue eyes twinkling in a highly disturbing fashion. 'I think you will find a Dueling class somewhat unnecessary this year Mr Weasley,' he said. 'And that is all I have to say on the matter at this moment. At my age, you find that there is a great deal of joy to be had in such things as surprising people.'

He dug a sheaf of papers out of a red satin pouch bedecked with sequins that hung from his belt. 'And now we come to the reason behind my little visit,' he announced. 'Your booklists. I left the quills addressing the other students as we speak, they should go out with this evenings Owl Post. '

Harry reached for his eagerly and began to read.

_Dear Mr Potter,_

_We are pleased to be welcoming you back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for your Newt studies. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. We remind you that term begins on 1 September and that the Hogwarts Express will leave Platform Nine and Three-Quarters from London's King's Cross at eleven o'clock promptly. _

_Sixth years are allowed unrestricted access to Hogsmeade village but those who fail to return by curfew will be severely punished._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Harry turned to the other sheet and saw a surprisingly long list. It was probably as long as the one he had received for first year, rather than the usual lists, which generally mentioned the next grade of the Standard Book of Spells and whatever the newest DADA teacher had set.

**HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY** **Uniform**

_Besides the standard uniform Sixth Year Students will require:_

_One set of Dueling Robes_

_One heavy-duty robe_

_One pair of protective boots, black (dragonhide or similar)_

**Set Books**

_The Standard Book of Spells Grade 6 by Miranda Goshawk_

_Advanced Transfiguration by Emeric Switch_

_More Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore_

_Dangerous Drafts by Francis Slug_

_More than meets the Eye by Cassandra Brothelwaite_

_A Beginners Guide to the Healing Arts by Poppy Pomphrey_

_Passing your Apparition Theory Test by Wilbert Gorge_

_Powers You Never Knew You Had and What To Do With Them Now You've Wised Up by Amanda Hunter_

_So You Want To Keep on Breathing by_ _Acheron Parthenopaeus_

**Other Equipment **

_1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 1)_

_1 set reinforced glass or crystal vials_

_1 set juggling balls_

Juggling balls? What on earth was he going to need _them_ for? Besides juggling. And why would they be teaching juggling at Hogwarts? He wondered where they were going to buy them from. He didn't remember there being a shop which sold juggling balls in Diagon Alley. Of course the last time he'd actually been to Diagon Alley was just before third year.

Still, this time there was no Quidditch World Cup or trouble with the ministry to distract him and he was looking forward to going shopping with his friends, especially since there was so much more on offer in London than there was in Hogsmeade.

He could look into Quality Quidditch Supplies and see what the best broom on the market was, though he had no plans to be getting rid of his Firebolt.

He was looking forward to having a _really_ good look round Flourish and Blotts, especially their Defense section.

His mouth watered at the thought of stopping by Florean Fortescues. Even with the proprietor himself bringing him free ice-cream every half hour or so as he'd worked on his essays that summer he hadn't made his way through all the flavours on offer, and he was bound to have added some new ones in the last two years.

Best of all he could finally stop in at Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes and see for himself the Twins new shop. He couldn't wait to see what they'd done with the money he'd given them – he'd bet shopping there would be an experience and a half!

He grinned over at his friends. Hermione was already drawing up an itinerary, which she was rattling off to a clearly bemused Neville while Ron and his sister excitedly discussed brooms.

It was then that he noticed the strained look on Mrs Weasleys face. It was clear that Ron's Mum was gearing herself up to do something that she knew wasn't going to go down well and Harry had a sinking feeling that he knew what it was.

'Well,' she said bracingly. 'If you'll pass me your lists dears I'll see that Arthur pops in after work to pick everything up. I _would_ ask the twins but I'm not sure I could trust them not to add a few 'surprises' to your shopping and I'm sure we'd all rather avoid that!'

'Mum!' Ginny cried out in shock while Ron stared at his mother in horrified disbelief.

'You can't mean we're not going!' he said. 'That's not fair!'

'I can and I do,' she said firmly. 'It isn't safe for you to be wandering around Diagon Alley and I don't intend to let anything happen to you before you even reach school. It's bad enough the trouble you all get into while you're there!'

'But Mrs Weasley,' Hermione practically pleaded. 'I _have_ to go to Flourish and Blotts!'

'I'm sure the Order members can pick up everything you need dear,' she replied.

'Then why,' asked Harry quietly, 'can't the Order members keep an eye on _us_ while we do our own shopping?' He locked eyes with the headmaster. 'People don't like being locked up.'

He thought he saw the light in the headmasters eyes dim slightly at this reminder of their conversation at the end of last year. Mrs Weasley, however, rounded on him.

'Harry James Potter! How can you say such a thing! We aren't locking you up, we're looking out for your safety! Merlin knows someone has to! You can't just forget that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is after you!'

'It's not something I'm likely to forget,' he snapped, thinking of the prophecy that told him he was fated to either kill the dark Lord or die at his hands. ' But I'm not about to let him run my life either! It's **_my_** life and I want to _live_ it – not spend it hiding away from everything!

Voldemort isn't going to be hanging round Diagon Alley doing his shopping! It's not like the Death Eaters know we're coming – they're not going to be hiding in wait for us!

You could get the Order to keep an eye on us all day if you had to so _WHY CAN'T WE GO?_'

'Harry,' she said with obviously strained patience. 'It isn't as if the Order doesn't have more important things to do.

And the Death Eaters _know_ you'll have to go to London eventually to get your school supplies – where else would you get them from? They could very well be waiting for you.

Do you really want to put everyone else there in danger just because you want to get out of the house?'

That struck Harry. A part of him wanted to rage at the unfairness of it all, that he should be forced to the sidelines of his own life, made to miss out, just because he was the bloody Boy-Who-Lived. He was sick of it! Sick of everyone dictating how he should behave, sick of everyone else deciding what was 'best' for him, sick of being treated like a little kid who couldn't stand on his own two feet.

On the other hand he remembered only too well the guilt he'd felt over Cedric's death, just because the two of them had taken the Triwizard Cup together. The guilt he still felt over Sirius, who had died because Harry just _had_ to go to the Department of Mysteries. How would he feel if anyone else died because of his actions?

His shoulders slumped, he wasn't sure _what_ the right thing to do was anymore.

Ron leapt to his feet, his chair teetering precariously as he shoved his way out of it, eyes blazing. As Harrys best mate he knew, better than anyone, how Harry felt. He was his dorm mate, the person he bunked with over the holidays and he couldn't begin to count the times he'd woken Harry from a nightmare or been woken by him.

Sometimes they'd talked late into the night, and while it wasn't exactly _'sharing their feelings,_' which sounded uncomfortably girly, rather like something Lavender and Parvati would do, he felt that he understood the burdens on Harrys soul better than most, and certainly better than his mother! How dare she talk to him like that!

Ginny was barely half a step behind him, equally incensed. She had long since gotten over her crush on harry and without infatuation clouding her eyes and her judgement she'd come to some startling conclusions about him.

What her lovestruck young mind had taken as evidence of her tragic hero's deep and mysterious personality was actually the heavy burden of past sorrows and present responsibilities that weighed him down.

He was just a boy, an incredible boy, yes, but still just a boy. He didn't deserve to have to shoulder all those burdens. Didn't anyone other than his friends see that?

Even at his most light hearted, around Ron and the Twins you could still see it sometimes, the faint shadow of pain behind his eyes, a shadow that just wasn't there in someone like Dean, or Michael Corner.

She may not have been 'in love' with Harry anymore but he was like another brother to her now and she loved him. He didn't _deserve_ all this happening to him and she wasn't about to let **_anyone_** make it any worse for him. Not even her own mother.

Hermione was busy gesticulating wildly, bushy hair flying. Her usual calm logic was momentarily lost in the heat of her indignation. Hermione was a smart girl and she'd done a lot of thinking over the summer. It just wasn't _right_ how people treated Harry!

_Before,_ she might have argued with him, pointing out that _of course_ he shouldn't go, it would be far too dangerous, that this was the _logical_ course of action, couldn't he see that? But her faith in authority had been badly eroded in the past year and she'd begun to see that logic couldn't solve every problem.

She'd seen Percy Weasley's blind devotion to the Ministry and had compared herself to the Gryffindor Prefect she had once admired. She had been almost as blind, in her faith, above all others, in the headmaster. She had found that he wasn't infallible or omniscient or all-powerful. He didn't always know the right thing to do.

She had seen first hand how Harry had suffered last year and while a lot of it he'd brought on himself, an awful lot more had been inflicted by the adults he knew and trusted. And they were doing it again! What right did they have to treat Harry like this? To say things like that? It wasn't _right!_

And Hermione just wasn't the sort of person to let such injustice lie – the one and only time she had _ever_ been in trouble at Primary school was for braining a bully with her Children's Encyclopedia, she was a tireless fighter for House-Elf Rights and Harry was HER BEST FRIEND! She wasn't going to let them do this to him.

Didn't they understand that they were going to break him with this amount of pressure? They were trying to take his life away from him and she _knew_ Harry, knew it would drive him crazy, just like it had Sirius. If this kept up he was going to snap.

Well they weren't going to get away with it! Not so long as Hermione Jane Granger had a say in the matter!

Even Neville was arguing - and he'd been raised on stories of the Boy-Who-Lived, this incredible, god-like figure. He'd been shaking when he realized that the boy he'd met on the train was _Harry Potter_. But that wasn't Harry.

Harry had stood up for him as a klutzy first year, had taught him defence and had given him a lot more confidence in himself than he had ever had before.

He remembered once, telling everyone that he wasn't much of a Gryffindor, wasn't even much of a wizard, and Harry, handing him a chocolate frog and telling him he was worth ten of Malfoy. Telling him he was worth something.

He'd always stood up for him, had taught him, had even trusted him, _him_, Neville Longbottom, at his back in the Department of Mysteries. Well, he wasn't about to let Harry down now.

It was time Harry knew he had people on his side, people who would stand up for him like he'd stood up for them. And Neville was one of those people.

The headmaster held up a hand for silence and looked solemnly at the assembled teens.

'Molly, I understand your concerns but we cannot simply wrap the children in cotton wool to prevent them from harm.'

Remus Lupin spoke up. 'Considering the Ministry U-turn on Voldemorts return, I believe it would be better if Harry went. The people need to know that he isn't hiding away, that he isn't living in fear, so they feel that they can live their own lives. Much as I hate to say it Harry is a public figure and the public need to see that he is confident of the future.

And it isn't good for him to have to miss what's left of his childhood. By all means take the necessary precautions, Albus, but let them go. We can't keep them locked up here forever.'

The Headmaster sighed. 'The rest of the students will not receive their letters until tomorrow, there is no reason for anyone to believe that you will appear in Diagon Alley today, especially as you did not do your own shopping last year.

You have a point Remus but at this point it might not be wise to send them into Diagon Alley as themselves. They will have to be disguised, for their own safety as well as the Orders peace of mind.' He eyed Molly then turned to the teens. 'Nymphadora is particularly skilled at appearance charms, she may be able to change you enough to make it less likely you are recognised, at least at a distance.

You have shown a certain amount of skill in defending yourselves if it should come to that but if we take precautions hopefully that will not be needed. However all of you do have a certain talent for attracting trouble.

You will swear to me that you will keep together, that you will obey the guards I send to keep you safe and that you will be _careful_. I will send other Order members to keep an eye on you as you shop. Should anything untoward happen you will obey them. I shall take other precautions to ensure your safety but, I will let you go.'

He met Harry's eyes and Harry could see the echo of the words he'd spoken in his office at the end of the last school year. About not wanting Harry to suffer any more than he had to, about how he had to try, as an old man, to remember how a young one felt; saw the echoes of how he had failed Sirius, how he had said it was 'almost entirely' his fault. Saw the determination not to repeat his mistakes warring with the knowledge that without Harry the war could not be won.

Harry nodded.

'We'll be careful,' he said. And they would. But he was through with sitting back and letting everyone else run his life. He knew how important the war was, and he wasn't going to take unnecessary risks but he wasn't just some weapon to be kept on a shelf until he was needed.

Mrs Weasley was still sputtering protests towards the headmaster but his friends were visibly delighted. Ron punched him lightly on the shoulder.

'We're going to Diagon Alley!'

_Well, what did you think? This chapter was **supposed** to include Diagon Alley, etc, but I thought it'd be better to post what I had rather than keep writing until I'd covered everything. I don't know **when** you'd have gotten it otherwise!_

_Right, most important question: was everyone in character? When I wrote them speaking did it sound like them? Or was there any point when you thought 'such-and-such wouldn't have said that!' There's a lot of character development in this chapter so I need to know if it was done well or if it still needs work. Either way let me know!_

_I've heard they're cracking down on Review Responses at FFNet so I won't be able to reply to everyone anymore. Still, I'm not planning on stopping completely. _

_To Sara Ane: how can I resist the chibi eyes? Go ahead and use it. It's flattering to think you thought it so good that you wanted to borrow it. Good luck with the story!_

_Thanks again, especially to **Tansy1354** and **Kjkit** for their advice on how to make the last chapter better and to everyone else who reviewed, I hope the long wait hasn't made any of you give up on the story. _

_Hopefully you won't have to wait this long between chapters ever again and I plan to try and get the next one out by mid-October. I'll see what I can do. _

_Cheers. _


	10. Almost There

_AN: I thought that since its been a month since I last updated that I would post what I had and not leave you wondering if I'd died or something like I did over the summer. So here it is. It's a bit shorter than usual but I thought better to post it than leave you hanging. The next bit is sort of in the process of being written – real life is being nasty at the moment and not leaving me much time to write. Still I'm determined you'll get at least one more by Christmas._

_Anyway enjoy._

**Almost There.**

Remus was, of course, the first person to volunteer as a chaperone. Not that anyone minded, as the werewolf was well liked. Unfortunately, Mrs. Weasley, with a steely glint in her eyes, was quick to announce that she would be coming too. The teenagers were far less happy with that.

Perhaps the headmaster caught the looks of horror they all exchanged because he tactfully told her that she was needed far more at Grimmauld Place and so couldn't accompany them to Diagon Alley.

Harry didn't really think she'd bought it though, as she'd been banging pots and pans about with a little too much enthusiasm when they left.

It was arranged that Tonks would be 'coincidentally' running into them at the Three Broomsticks so that they wouldn't all be seen arriving together before joining them on their shopping trip. She had seemed supremely pleased to be given an excuse to get out of work.

Other Order members would be dotted around Diagon Alley or stationed in the shops they were likely to be visiting. Bill was already in place at the Bank, and the Twins (and their merchandise) made for pretty formidable foes within their own shop.

Dung had volunteered, suspiciously quickly, to loiter by the entrance to Knockturn Alley and Shacklebolt was more than willing to spend his lunch hour checking out what was new in Quality Quidditch Supplies.

Harry hadn't recognized the other people the headmaster had contacted but knew that there would be a warlock sipping coffee at Florean Fortescues and a witch in Flourish and Blotts.

There would also be someone who had been so covered in voluminous veils that Harry couldn't even tell if it was human, let alone it's gender, getting potions supplies at the Apothecary.

Mad Eye Moody, who had been called in to oversee 'the Operation,' as he called it, would also be on hand, keeping a close eye on them when they were outside. Just in case someone snatched them in the few feet of street between shops.

Since the Ministry had been forced to acknowledge Voldemorts return, the Minister had been attempting to seem like a decisive leader in the hope that people then wouldn't kick him out of office for his sheer stupidity.

He had been vocal about, and had actually followed through, in putting more Aurors on the beat. A lot of it was probably fear for his own safety, especially since it had been proven that the Dark Lord could just walk into the Ministry.

Harry wondered briefly if his badge had said '_Purpose: World Domination'_ or '**_Finally_** _get rid of Potter'_ or maybe even just plain '_Theft._' It was clear that Ministry security had been in dire need of an overhaul.

Anyway, it meant that there were at least two Aurors patrolling Diagon Alley at all times now.

Moody and Tonks, with a little help from Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes, had also come up with a few good ideas to make it less likely that they would be bothered.

The magical hair dyes that Harry had received for his birthday proved surprisingly effective. Instead of his usual unruly mop, Harry was now sporting stylish black spikes with purple highlights.

Tonks had pretended to swoon when she saw him while Ginny had giggled at her antics. Or maybe at him, Harry wasn't sure.

Ron's hair was in the same style, only he was sporting deep blue highlights and had spent some time touching his hair in front of the mirror and going '_Blimey!_'

Harry didn't blame him, his mate didn't really look like, well, _Ron_ without the trademark Weasley hair. Still, Harry was surprised to find that he quite liked the style and resolved to replace the ones Tonks was using up.

Nevilles usually sandy hair had become a dark auburn, longer and wavier than his own hair was. He looked very different, and Harry could really see the resemblance to the picture of a young Frank Longbottom he had seen, especially since Neville had slimmed down considerably over the past year.

Luckily Tonks had brought along some dyes that were suitable for the girls and so Ginny was now sporting a tumbling mass of blonde curls and Hermione a short, sleek cap of dark brown hair.

Tonks had then got to work on their eyes, announcing that she was far better with appearance charms than she was at household ones.

'Its funny,' she said. 'Being a Metamorphmagus and being good at appearance charms, since I don't need them.

Still, it used to annoy the other girls in the dorm that I could change at will when they had to spend _hours_ getting ready so I learnt them in self-defense really. Didn't want to wind up hexed you know!

For some reason I never did get the one to hide acne though. Tried it once and turned all Vicky Thomas's spots bright green. She didn't speak to me for two years after that.'

The young Auror shrugged. 'I didn't mind, she was always a bit stuck up. Found it quite funny really and it came in dead useful – I cast it on the Slytherin Quidditch team just before the Semi-Finals for the House Cup. They weren't impressed.' She grinned at the memory.

'I used to do some really cool stuff, like give them Cats eyes, or turn them silver, stuff like that. My best one was when I gave them all a ring of Scarlet and Gold flames for the big Gryffindor/Ravenclaw Quidditch final in my Sixth year. Looked bloody spectacular that did!

So don't worry – I know exactly what I'm doing. Even if I haven't done it in years.'

Harry wasn't sure whether to be reassured or worried but he wasn't given any time to decide because Tonks practically pounced on him, pinning him down, and started charming his eyes.

Soon he and Ron had matching eyes of a darker, deeper blue than Ron's usually were. Ginny, Hermione and Neville were all given eyes of varying shades of hazel.

Moody then cast a light Disinterest charm on them. This was in the hopes that a) anyone looking at them hopefully wouldn't bother to look too closely and b) anyone hoping to spot them by looking out for those who were wearing layers of Concealment Charms would pass them over, as it was too weak to draw their notice.

After all, much of what had been done to them so far came under the heading of Appearance, or Glamour Charms, rather than spells of Concealment.

There wouldn't be any problem in wearing layers of warding and protective charms since many members of the public had started using them regularly since the start of the summer.

A certain level of magical protection was therefore likely to go unnoticed. The headmaster had even provided them with emergency portkeys, just in case things went wrong.

Harry had then been told to fetch the 'Alice in Wonderland' box he had received in the bag of tricks that Fred and George had given him for his birthday.

The Twins had confessed to Harry that it made their Mum feel better to see them reading the classics, she seemed to feel it meant they weren't beyond all hope and might one day go back to complete their education.

'We didn't have the heart to tell her it was all for the shop.' Fred had sighed.

The kit contained a bubble-blower whose bubbles came out in letters to form a variety of random floating insults, some Flamingo Fudge, a deck of animated cards which could attack on command and, most importantly, growth and shrinking potions.

The two Aurors had decided that Ron really needed to be downsized slightly so he wasn't quite so gangly, and then Harry had been grown to match him.

It felt kind of strange, Harry decided, to suddenly be able to look his best mate in the eye and the extra inches felt really weird. Ron looked as if he found a tall Harry as odd as Harry found a dark-haired Ron.

Even though they were all but bouncing with an eagerness to finally get going the teenagers were forced to stand still while the Aurors placed spell after protective spell on them.

In the end Moody had been scowling darkly as the five of them practically wriggled with impatience to get going and were then forced to endure a ten minute lecture on taking the proper safety precautions, peppered with occasional shouts of 'Constant Vigilance!'

Luckily Tonks took pity on them and distracted him by asking if all the Order Members were aware of their new look, causing him to stomp off and check, twice, that everyone was in place and would not be fooled by the layers of spells they were under.

'Like Santa Claus!' said Tonks brightly, which earned her an exceedingly black look from the grizzled old ex-auror and conjured up some truly strange mental images.

Finally, _finally,_ they were on their way.

rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Sorry bout that, only way it'll let me break up the page.

_Well there you go. I should finally get to Diagon Alley, like I've been promising for chapters, **next** chapter. _

_I didn't get a lot of feedback on the last chapter, though I got lots of new people putting me on their authors alert (hello new people!) so if you review this time I still want you to tell me if everyone is in character. _

_Anyway I should be back with more soon, hope you enjoyed this little chapter._

_Special hellos to **Shinigami** – I'm sorry but Percy has a long way to go before they'll even **think** of forgiving him. He isn't ready to face up to being in the wrong so he's going to be slapped in the face with a wet fish until he breaks down and begs. However your dreams of what'll happen with Umbridge – well lets just say you should be happy with what I've got planned, muahahahah._

_**Altariel Eldalote** – **More** shouting? Most people want a less Caps-Locky Harry. Still, I'll see what I can do...Thanks for the hugle by the way!_

_And to the ever faithful **Jemma Blackwell** and **Japonica**, see I can update quickly! _

_T.T.F.N Everyone!_


	11. Diagon Alley

_Authors Note: Merry belated Christmas and a Happy (almost) New Year? I know I said I was determined to get another chapter out earlier but I also wanted to finally get Diagon Alley out of the way. One of them had to give. Maybe you could look on this as an early Valentines? Anyway, you shouldn't be too mad at me after you see how long this chapter is. (Hint: it's rather long.) _

_This chapter goes out to **Meggplant**, for a review that was more flattering than she knew and to my sister **Prue**, who finally read the rest. _

**Diagon Alley**

Harry felt eternally grateful that Remus had decided to let them walk the short distance to The Leaky Cauldron rather then flooing. After Portkeys, using the Floo Network had to be his least favourite form of travel.

Come to think of it, there weren't all that many that he _did_ like.

The Knight bus was a nightmare, he was almost sure he'd been nursing a mild concussion when he got off it the last time, and he really wasn't keen on putting himself at the mercy of the seriously erratic driver again. Ever.

Hippogriffs were uncomfortable, Thestrals held too many unpleasant memories and the Hogwarts Express, and boats and coaches were impractical if you wanted to go anywhere except Hogwarts.

Mr Weasleys enchanted car had been alright. It might have thrown them out after the Whomping Willow incident but who could blame it for that? And it had rescued them from the Acromantulas. Acromantulae. Whatever.

No, the only wizarding form of transport he'd really taken to was the broomstick, and that would probably be a bit uncomfortable for long journeys, as well as a bit conspicuous.

Harry seriously hoped he took to apparating. It would be awful if everyone else was popping here, there and everywhere while he was so rubbish he kept splinching himself.

Malfoy and his cronies would probably laugh themselves sick and as for Snape! Harry shuddered, he didn't even want to imagine. The Potions Professor would take great delight in rubbing his face in it. Repeatedly.

Still, it couldn't be too hard could it? Not if they expected people like Crabbe and Goyle to manage it!

Suddenly tilting his head up at the older man walking beside him Harry blurted out 'Where _is_ Sirius' motorbike anyways?'

If the random comment struck him as odd then he didn't show it; in fact a slight smile touched the corners of his lips.

'Ahh, I assume I was correct in guessing your surprise birthday present?'

'Yeah,' Harry smiled. 'I meant to tell you before but you disappeared after the party.'

'I believe it may be in Buckbeaks room.' Lupin said, which made a great deal of sense as none of them had made a habit of spending any time in there, exploring or not. No one, with the exception of Hagrid, was a hundred percent comfortable with the imposing Hippogriff.

'He certainly spent a great deal of time in there, and I remember thinking it suspicious that he was in there so much over Christmas when he could have been spending it with you.'

He dropped a hand to Harry's shoulder and squeezed it slightly.

'Never think he didn't care Harry. He cared for you more than anything else in the world.'

He sighed. 'I think it was killing him to know you would be leaving again while he was forced to stay behind, unable to help you or even just to be there for you.

There were times I know he just had to get away from everyone and I believe he used those times to work on the bike. I think it may have given him some peace to be able to do at least _something_ for you, to feel that he wasn't completely out of the picture.'

His hand dropped and he looked away into the distance, though Harry wasn't sure he was seeing anything that was actually there.

'You may not wish to hear this Harry, or to believe it, but the choice he made in leaving the house to come to your aid was probably the most at peace he had been in months.'

Harry would probably have replied angrily to that if the sudden lump in his throat hadn't interfered, but it did, and so instead he caught Lupin's quiet murmur that Sirius should never have been locked up in that house.

The Professor was right. Before, even when he'd been on the run, Sirius had still been able to _do_ something. Letters, conversations in the fire, he'd even hidden in that cave during the Tri-Wizard Tournament. He'd been able to _be_ there for him.

To lock someone like that away, in a house they _knew_ held far too many bad memories, forced to sit back and watch while everyone else contributed, unable to do _anything_ to help those he cared about – it must have been torture.

Harry knew it would have driven him crazy. Bad enough to be stuck alone in the Dursleys, not knowing what was going on. How much worse to be stuck with Mrs Black and all the memories Azkaban must have brought back, knowing what was going on but still forced to sit there and do nothing.

Harry knew it would have driven him crazy too, and privately admitted that he would have done the same thing, in the end, in Sirius' shoes. He'd _seen_ Sirius as he rushed into the Department of Mysteries. He'd been alive in a way he hadn't been for a long time. And then those final, fatal mistakes…

Harry would never stop hating the way it had all turned out, never stop wishing it had ended differently, with his godfather triumphant and probably angry as hell with him. All the same, he couldn't blame Sirius for the choices he'd made.

'So,' Harry coughed, clearing his throat, and grateful that the others were walking a little way ahead and so hadn't heard the intensely personal conversation. He wouldn't have been comfortable discussing Sirius like this with anyone other than Professor Lupin. 'The motorbike?'

'From what I could gather while Sirius was cooing over his 'baby' and cursing, loudly and inventively I might add - Mrs Weasley was _not_ amused, the ministry attempted to seize it at Hogwarts but Padfoot's love of bucking authority must have communicated itself to the bike somehow. I wouldn't have put it past him to have deliberately charmed the thing to be rebellious.

In any case it led the young aurors who'd been sent to fetch it a merry chase and ended up living feral in the forest for quite some time.' He laughed suddenly, 'It's no wonder the people of Dufftown have legends of a spectral motorbike roaming the night!

After twelve years in the forest I wouldn't have been surprised if the damage had been irreparable but whatever else you can say about Sirius, he and James _were_ two of the most brilliant students in Hogwarts. That machine was built to last, though it was in very bad shape.'

'So how did he find it again? If it was running wild in the forest?'

'The result of a rather clever little charm that was originally used so they would never have to remember where they had parked it when they were utterly legless, a state of being which occurred with a great deal of frequency, especially the summer after our seventh year.'

He smiled reminiscently. 'The pair of them were absolutely hilarious when they were drunk.

I remember the time we went out together to celebrate your birth Harry, your father trying to stagger into the house quietly so as not to disturb Lily. He tripped over the doorstep, tangled with a coat-rack and ended up half-on, half-off the sofa, giggling to himself and going 'Shhh!' every five minutes.

As for Sirius, he somehow managed to lock himself in the fridge, he never was that comfortable with Muggle kitchen appliances, thought they were dangerous. It took me ten minutes to work out where the muffled thumping was coming from and let him out.

Then he fell asleep in the pizza he'd insisted we had to buy and woke up the next morning with his hair every which way, tomato sauce all over his face and a slice of mushroom up his nose.'

He laughed. 'It was times like that that made me almost grateful that a werewolf is incapable of getting more than very mildly drunk.'

Harry couldn't help grinning at the mental image of a pizza covered Sirius and mentally added the story to the meagre store of knowledge he had on his parents and godfather.

It occurred to him that despite all his training from the Dursleys on the subject of 'Don't Ask Questions!' he really was going to have to start trying to find out more about them before all the little stories like Lupin's were lost forever.

He suddenly realised that Lupin had stopped talking and was regarding him quizzically as he drifted along lost in thought.

'Er, so, the motorbike found him?'

'Essentially yes, although I'm not quite sure when. He certainly had it by the time I joined him at Grimmauld Place and he's been repairing and improving it ever since.' He paused slightly, then added, a catch in his voice, 'He _had been_ repairing and improving it, I should say.'

Intent on moving past the awkward moment Harry asked him what improvements had been made.

'Well, he'd sorted out a few balance problems, improved the speed, put in a new navigational system and Merlin only knows what else.

He was tinkering with it all the time so the only way to find out everything would be to read the notes he kept. If you _can_ read them, of course. Padfoot was never the most organised writer. Or the neatest, to be perfectly honest. I imagine he kept them with the bike.

I suppose we'll have to think of some way to smuggle them out without Molly noticing. I don't suppose you've let any of this slip to the older Weasleys have you?'

'Of course not!' Harry replied indignantly. 'I haven't even told Ron and Hermione!'

'Really?' The werewolf looked surprised. Harry looked at his feet and mumbled 'I forgot.' Lupin smiled. 'If I were you I would wait until _after_ you are all at Hogwarts, and Molly is unable to do anything about it before mentioning it to them.

I'm not saying don't trust them, of course not',' he said hastily. 'It's just that they, and you, are not exactly the quietest of people now are you?' he added with a wry grin.

Harry grinned back at him, 'No, not really.'

The older man tipped him a wink and murmured, 'Your secret's safe with me Harry,'

before turning his attention to the rest of the group who had been walking a little way ahead and were now clustered around a shop window while Hermione attempted to explain to her pureblooded friends exactly what the electrical appliances inside did.

For a moment, before he reverted to Professor Lupin, Harry could see the mischievous Messr. Moony he had once been and smiled to himself as he waded into the conversation to help Hermione out.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Less than five minutes later they were walking through the doors of The Leaky Cauldron. To Harry it felt almost like stepping onto Platform Nine and Three-Quarters after the summer, or heading to the Burrow after weeks with the Dursleys.

There was a sense of homecoming, of welcome, to walk into a place filled with wizarding robes, noisy conversations about Quidditch or the Daily Prophet and the smell of butterbeer and mead.

The pub was quite full and it took Harry a few minutes to realise that no one, absolutely _no one_, in that crowd of people were staring at him or his scar. It was something of a novel sensation.

Ron came up behind him as Remus greeted Tonks and started herding everyone out and gave him a shove towards the back.

'Get a move on mate, we can't stand around all day!'

He was obviously impatient to get started and so Harry good-naturedly allowed himself to be pushed about.

It took a little while to get to the exit as people didn't automatically give way to Lupin the way they generally did for Hagrid, but at least they hadn't had to push their way through a mass of rabid fans, as they would have had to if Harry had not been in disguise.

As they left the building Harry noticed Ginny tossing her blonde curls at a young barman in a rather tight white t-shirt and jeans who was giving her a highly appreciative smile.

'You know Ginny,' he said softly, leaning down close to her ear. 'With the blonde curls, the dazzling smile and the big, bright eyes, you're really starting to remind me of someone…'

'Oh? Who?' Ginny asked, widening her eyes and batting her lashes at him.

He heaved a soulful sigh. 'Just someone I used to know. Someone really popular, someone loads of people admired…someone,' he lowered his voice huskily. 'Someone they all thought was _gorgeous._'

'Really! Now this is sounding good! Tell me more. Who is it?' She socked him lightly on the arm. 'C'mon Harry I'm waiting – tell me who!' She tossed her hair again, this time at a young man Harry recognised as one of the Ravenclaw House Chasers, Jeremy Stretton, as he exited the Alley.

'Do you really want to know?' Harry asked, lowering his voice seductively as her eyes continued to follow the Ravenclaw.

'Mmmmhmmm.'

Harry leaned closer, so that his lips practically grazed her ear and murmured 'Gilderoy Lockhart!'

This was swiftly followed by a rather loud 'OW!' as Ginny squealed 'WHAT!' and punched him one in the shoulder. She really had quite a good right hook, Dudley would have been envious.

He rubbed at it, then started laughing so hard at the look on her face that he was quite incapable of fending her off when she shouted 'You Evil Git!' and started slapping him.

Hermione and Neville were staring at them in shock while Ron rushed over to wrestle his little sister off his best friend.

'What did you do that for?' he asked, baffled.

'He _said_,' she told him through gritted teeth, 'he said I looked like Lockhart!'

Ron gave her a long, hard look and suddenly creased up laughing. Ginny started slapping _him_ then.

'Some support you are!' Still, at least she'd started to see the funny side, as she was beginning to laugh herself.

The boys tentatively felt that the danger was probably passed. Both of them slung an arm around her shoulders as they headed to where Remus Lupin was patiently waiting for them by the entrance to Diagon Alley.

'C'mon Gin, let's go get you a broom.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Diagon Alley was everything Harry remembered and more.

There were a harried looking wizard and witch trying to levitate their sticky children out of one of Florean Fortescues infamous Chocolate Pits, into which they had evidently dived headfirst.

There was a strange purple cloud that was unmistakably the work of Fred and George creeping up the street and a crowd pushing and shoving each other in front of the window to Quality Quidditch Supplies.

Neville had managed to convince Hermione that it was better to leave Flourish and Blotts till last so that she could have a really good look round without being rushed off to some other shop or having to put up with Ron whining about how long she was taking.

Harry made a mental note that Neville really seemed to know just what to say to Hermione lately to make her listen to his point of view. Harry knew that that wasn't always easy, he'd certainly failed enough times, and so had Ron.

Maybe it was all the extra time they spent together when Hermione was tutoring him that meant he knew her so well.

Whatever it was, it meant that Hermione had made no complaints about the decision to head for the broomstick shop first.

As they walked down the street they passed a pokey little shop almost hidden between two larger stores. It wasn't one Harry had ever paid any attention to before, and one he was sure he would have continued not to notice if it hadn't been for the group of excited girls who were gathered about the door.

Harry could just make out the lettering on the window which said F.A Parkes and Co., in curling script around what looked to be a picture of a gramophone. The girls were all talking loudly and they couldn't help but overhear what was being said.

'Seventeen Sickles an Ounce? Not really my cup of Butterbeer!'

'Ha! _Her_ idea of music is that stupid Quaffle song!'

'Beat Back those Bludgers Boys and Toss that Quaffle here is a classic! Philistine!'

'I liked that Midnight Moon though, the drums on that were amazing!'

'Weird Sisters Rule!'

'Have you _heard_ the lyrics though? Can't believe the fans wrote that! D'you think maybe _I_ could…'

'What _are_ they talking about?' asked Hermione.

'Nicole Halliwell,' said Ron and Ginny, practically in unison.

'Who?' asked Harry, as they peeled off towards the chattering girls.

'_Nicole Halliwell_,' explained Ginny. 'She's a singer, only a few years older than you. She was born over here, in the North-East somewhere, but her parents moved to San Francisco when she was small so she went to the Salem Institute of Witchcraft rather than Hogwarts.

She's _really_ good. Her new song was actually written by her fan club, I entered the competition to do it but I didn't win.' She looked momentarily downcast. 'It's supposed to be really good though – it's released today.'

'I haven't heard the new one,' Ron said, 'but she did a single with the Weird Sisters not long back that was awesome. It's that one Tonks keeps humming.'

'I hear they've agreed for her and Celestina Warbeck to do a duet over Christmas,' Ginny continued.

'Oy Harry, take a look over _there,_' said Ron reverently, his face turning a bit pink.

'There' turned out to be huge poster in one of the shops windows which showed a young witch with long brown hair, green eyes and a naughty smile. She was wearing a flowing purple robe over a tight black top and trousers, and gave the gazing Ron an appraising look before blowing him a kiss with a saucy wink.

Ron turned even redder, which caused Neville and Tonks to laugh, while Harry made a mental note to buy Ron one of those posters for Christmas. It would certainly beat that one of the Tennis player that Dean had over his bed.

'So,' he said slyly, giving his blushing mate a poke in the ribs as Tonks escorted the girls inside to buy the song. 'Is it _really_ her music you're interested in?'

'She's a very talented artist,' said Ron primly, sounding eerily like his older brother Percy. Then he smirked. ''Course it doesn't hurt that she's bloody hot either!'

Harry, having suffered through a school year without Quidditch, then been exiled to the barren wasteland of magic that was Privet Drive before ending up at Grimmauld Place where, even when he had got his beloved Firebolt back, security concerns made it impossible for him to fly, was feeling almost desperate to reconnect with his favourite pastime in Quality Quidditch Supplies.

He could see quite a few people clustered around the windows, as there had been back when his Firebolt came out, and he was eager to find out what all the excitement was about.

It was therefore something of a relief when the girls rejoined them and they could head off again.

This time Harry was in the lead, as Ron had paused to look over his shoulder one last time at the poster, which waved him goodbye and made him blush again.

Harry was therefore the first one to reach their destination and see the cause of all the fuss.

The store was hung with navy blue banners and instead of the usual broomstick on display in the window was a long table, around which seven people in navy blue robes emblazoned with two crossed golden bulrushes.

Harry distantly heard Ginny squeal as he focused on one particularly familiar burly form. '_Oliver Wood?_'

One of the boys in front of him turned round sharply and scanned the crowd. 'Harry?' he said.

Harry froze as he realized it was Dean Thomas. His dorm mates eyes scanned the crowd for a moment before suddenly swinging back to focus on his face. For a long moment he stared at Harry, forehead scrunched in thought.

Harry was panicking. It was obvious that Dean suspected something, he probably looked familiar and, _oh crap_, Dean was an artist and had spent hours sketching the inhabitants of Gryffindor Tower. He probably recognised his facial features, why hadn't they changed his facial features? Oh hell, what was he going to do now?

Dean was opening his mouth and Harrys panic rocketed up, Dean was going to blow their disguise sky-high if he didn't do something, and soon.

Thinking quickly Harry locked gazes with Dean and raised his index finger to his mouth. He knew his muggleborn mate would recognise the gesture to shut up since it was drilled into them practically from birth.

However, in the wizarding world, where exasperated Mums and Dads could simply hex your mouth shut, or even hex it _off_ if they were really annoyed, practically no one knew what it meant.

Harry only hoped there weren't too many muggleborns nearby who might put two and two together.

Dean wasn't stupid. His mouth clicked shut and he turned slightly, still keeping his eyes on Harry but making it far less obvious that he was staring.

Harry moved up behind him and whispered 'Hi Dean.'

'It is…' he trailed off and Harry nodded.

'In disguise.'

'Cool.'

'Look,' Harry said quickly, glancing round at where Lupin and the others were making their way towards him. 'I can't talk, no one's supposed to know it's me.'

'Right,' he said. 'Mate? The DA? What's happening with it?'

'Look, keep the coins on you when term starts – I'll call a meeting in the first week. We'll decide then.'

'OK, I'll let everyone know, if you want?'

'That'd be great.'

'Well, I'd best leave before your 'twin' catches up,' Dean said, looking over Harrys shoulder. 'Later.' And with that he disappeared into the crowd.

'Mate!' Ron exclaimed, clapping Harry on the shoulder. 'Can you believe it? _Puddlemere United!_ Not as good as the Cannons of course but _how cool is this?_ Meeting the team! It's just, just, _wow_.'

Harry had to laugh, he couldn't remember the last time he'd seen his friend so excited.

'Yeah, it's brilliant! Did you see Wood?'

'Yeah, he made the squad just after Easter, it was in Quidditch Monthly. Not surprising really, he's a cracking Keeper. Fred and George went to see the last match against Tutshill. Absolutely flattened them – first time the Tornadoes've lost in six games.'

Harry was impressed, the Tutshill Tornadoes were powering their way up the League recently and were odds-on favourites for the Cup. They'd even beaten the Holyhead Harpies although that had been a very close run thing.

'Do you think they'll sign my broom?' asked Ginny.

'I still don't see what all the fuss is about,' said Hermione. 'They're only Quidditch players.'

'Hermione,' moaned Ron, scandalised. 'You just don't understand Quidditch! And it's better than adoring some stupid ponce whose lied about his _entire life!_ At least Puddlemere have actually done something worth admiring!'

'Ronald Weasley! Why I…'

'Enough children,' came Lupins quiet voice. 'And remember not to throw those names around. You don't know who might be listening. Do _try_ to remember that you are in disguise, and for a very good reason, hmmn?'

'Sorry Professor,' said Hermione, shamefaced.

'Yeah, sorry Professor.'

'Now,' he continued briskly. 'If only Tonks would be so good as to stop drooling over the Chasers and pay attention then perhaps we could move this inside?'

'OY!' Tonks exclaimed. 'I'm not drooling! Am, I?' she demanded of Ginny and Hermione who could only laugh and nod.

'Oh well,' she sighed. 'That Tristan Summersby is enough to make anyone drool.'

'She has a point,' said Ginny, while Ron made retching noises. 'Come on Hermione, even you have to admit he's a bit of a dish.'

She wrinkled her nose. 'I suppose he's alright,' she said dismissively.

Harry pushed his way through the door and very nearly collided with Kingsley Shacklebolt, who was stood on the other side talking to the manager.

If he'd thought it was buzzing with excitement outside it was nothing compared to what it was like inside the shop. There were grown wizards bouncing on their toes like excited six year olds at the prospect of meeting their heroes, and young witches having group hysterics after having their photo taken with the Chasers.

Ron was shooting the players almost anguished looks as he had to walk straight past them in order to look for Ginny's broom. Harry even thought he heard him whimper.

It wouldn't have surprised him, after all, Ron was passionate about all things Quidditch. Even his intense dislike of Krum, which Harry privately suspected came down to mostly jealousy, hadn't stopped him from eventually giving in and asking for an autograph.

'Don't worry mate,' he said, patting his shoulder consolingly. 'You can talk to them in a minute.'

Soon they were distracted by the discussion of comparative broom dynamics as Ginny considered the relative merits of a Cleansweep and the new Comet 300.

They had improved the acceleration considerably from the older Comet 290 but in the end Ginny decided to get the same model as Ron, as the Cleansweep was both sturdier and more hard-wearing.

As Ron proclaimed, Comets might look flashy but they just didn't have the endurance of a Cleansweep.

Harry turned around and started. Tonks had sprouted long blonde ringlets while he wasn't watching.

She was bouncing a pouch of Galleons up and down in her hand while her eyes kept casually scanning the store. Harry wasn't sure if this was Auror protectiveness or just an excuse to run her eyes over the Puddlemere chasers. Maybe it was both.

She turned to Ginny. 'Done?' she asked. Ginny nodded and the metamorphmagus led her to the tills while Lupin ushered the boys towards the queue by the Quidditch players.

Harry was once again glad to have been given an extra few inches for this outing, as usually, in crowds like this, he was unable to see any higher than the backs of other peoples heads.

'So what d'you reckon they're here for?' asked Harry.

'Probably promoting – there's a big game against the Ballycastle Bats the weekend after next. Fred'n'George've already put their bets down.'

'Who on?'

'Puddlemere to win – said they had to support their old Captain. I think Angelinas got tickets to go see it.'

'How'd you know that?'

'Fred told me, he sounded well pleased. I think he's hoping to get invited.'

They were getting closer to the players now, passing a long, low table piled high with merchandise. There were Puddlemere t-shirts, Puddlemere scarves, posters of the team, photos of the players and more.

Harry chose one of the larger posters of the team in the air above their home ground and a copy of 'Playing with Puddlemere' to go with his much-read copy of 'Flying with the Cannons.'

Ron and Neville both chose one of the smaller posters, while Hermione, predictably, merely sniffed rather than buy anything.

When Tonks and Ginny rejoined them the young auror had an armload of shopping, a t-shirt, a scarf, a cap, a badge and a large photo of the three chasers, the one she had pointed out as Tristan Summersby prominently in the foreground giving everyone a roguish grin.

'What can I say,' she said as she almost tripped over one dangling end of the scarf. 'Puddlemere Rocks!'

Ginny laughed and bent down to disentangle the neckwear from her legs, still lovingly cradling her new broom.

Before too much longer they were stood in front of the two beaters, a pair of seriously well-muscled cousins from Kent who seemed amiable and were perfectly happy to sign whatever was put in front of them.

They were also happy to chat to Ron about the Doppelbeater Deafence they'd used to great effect against the Wimbourne Wasps early on in the season.

The Chasers, who Ginny informed him had been given an entire six-sheet spread in the latest Teen Witch Weekly were obviously the draw for most of the women there. She admitted that she really wished she wasn't in disguise so she could have had a photo taken to prove she'd met them.

Personally Harry thought the three of them seemed rather relieved that Ginny _didn't_ want to pose for pictures, and even happier to find out that she could actually talk intelligibly about Quidditch. At least once she'd stopped stuttering.

Certainly they talked more animatedly to her than they had done to some of the other women there. They laughed when she told them about breaking into her brothers broomshed and wished her luck when she told them about transferring from seeker to Chaser.

She was almost visibly walking on air when they walked away, after the three of them had both signed her broom and written brief personal messages on her poster.

'That,' she announced, in tones of the deepest satisfaction. 'Is going above my bed the minute I get back to Hogwarts. I can't wait to see everyone's faces when they see this!'

Finally they reached the person Harry had really been wanting to see, the former Captain and Keeper for the Gryffindor House Team, Oliver Wood.

He really hadn't changed all that much from the burly fifth-year that Harry had met during his own first year at Hogwarts. A little taller, a little more muscular and a lot more tanned but still the same old Oliver Wood.

He looked up as they neared him with a practiced smile, which melted into a genuine grin, as he exclaimed 'Professor Lupin!'

'See, its not _just_ us,' murmured Neville, which caused the werewolf to raise an ironic eyebrow at him.

'Hello Oliver, it's a pleasure to see you again, and doing so well, too. How are you enjoying Professional Quidditch life?'

Wood's eyes lit up with the old maniacal gleam as he replied.

'It's bloody fantastic Professor! Quidditch morning, noon and night! Practice, new moves, more practice, friendlies, more practice, league matches, exhibition matches, charity matches and _even more practice!_ And when we're not practising there's books on moves and strategy and tactics and analysing the opposition.'

He heaved a blissful sigh. 'It's absolute heaven. Can't think of anything I'd rather do more.'

Lupin chuckled. 'Well you certainly sound happy enough Oliver, I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it so much.'

'How's the Gryffindor team doing, sir?'

Lupin seemed a bit surprised to be asked since he had left Hogwarts at the end of Woods last year but Harry rather thought that in his euphoria over winning the Quidditch Cup Oliver wouldn't have noticed a rampaging herd of elephants in the Great Hall, let alone his DADA teacher being outed as a werewolf and forced to resign.

Luckily, Harry and the others had been quite vocal about last years ordeal with regards to Quidditch, even if, the werewolf thought, looking back on what they had revealed at breakfast, they were frighteningly reticent about the rest of it.

'Well, they did win the Cup again, much to Professor McGonnagals relief.'

'Brilliant.'

'Even though Harry and the Weasley Twins _were_ banned from playing…'

'THEY WHAT!'

Oliver's strangled scream had his team-mates turning towards them in surprise.

'Kicked them off the team,' put in Ron.

'Took their brooms away,' added Harry.

'Harry got a _life-time_ ban,' said Ginny, darkly.

Oliver looked like he was about to faint.

'But, but _why_? They were _unbeatable_ beaters! Best Gryffindor beaters since, since the Prewett brothers! And Harry! Harry was a _great Seeker_, better than Charlie Weasley even! _WHAT DID THEY DO TO MY TEAM!_'

Lupin looked a trifle lost. 'Well,' he began, shooting an apologetic glance at Harry as he did so, 'a lot of people thought Harry was delusional, the papers were saying he was, er, lying, and attention seeking by saying the Dark Lord was back.'

Oliver looked indignant. 'That's no reason to kick him off the team! Everyone thought he was going round petrifying people before but that didn't stop him being a bloody good Seeker!'

Lupin looked a bit bewildered at Olivers stance but Harry had to smile at Oliver displaying all his old talent for not being able to see past the end of a Quaffle. It had happened fairly frequently at Hogwarts, like the time in second year, when Dobby had bewitched the Bludger to come after him and Oliver had told him to 'Get the Snitch or die trying!'

Or when the teachers were checking out his brand new Firebolt for hexes and Oliver had told their Head of House that he didn't care if it bucked him off so long as he'd caught the snitch on it first.

It wasn't that he didn't care about anything else, just that in Olivers mind, pretty much everything came secondary to the importance of Quidditch.

'And what about the Weasleys?' he demanded.

'Ah, a fight. With Draco Malfoy.'

'Which Fred wasn't even involved in,' said Ron, still indignant about that particular injustice.

'Only because they were holding him back,' Ginny said fairly.

Oliver groaned and banged his head off the table. His Captain and Seeker, Hildegarde FitzSimmonds, was beginning to look concerned.

'At least they still won,' Neville offered, a touch hesitantly.

Oliver looked up, expression still pained. 'These new players, they're a good team then?' His eyes begged them to say yes.

'Ah, well,' Lupin stammered.

Ron heaved a deep sigh. 'No. Not really.'

Oliver's head returned to the table.

'Hey,' Harry spoke up in defence of his best friend. 'That Ron Weasley's a pretty decent Keeper. At least once he got over his nerves,' he added honestly.

'And Ginny Weasleys a pretty good Seeker,' said Neville.

'She's a better Chaser,' Ginny asserted.

'But the Beaters,' Ron continued, and cringed at the memory. Ginny, who had also had the misfortune of playing with Kirke and Sloper, and Harry and Neville, who had had to watch, cringed in sympathy. 'The Beaters are abysmal.'

Oliver started banging his head rythmically.

It took them a while to bring him out of his depression with the assurance that now the Ministry was discredited and Dumbledore back in power surely Harry Potter would soon be playing Seeker once more. And with a new Captain, four experienced players, (even if one of them _was_ switching positions) and a very rigorous training regime, and even the possibility of some new and better Beaters, Gryffindor House would soon be returned to all its former glory.

In fact, by the time they left, Oliver was busy plotting a long letter, probably filled with his incomprehensible diagrams, to share his knowledge and experience of Quidditch and Captaincy with Katie Bell.

A final few minutes with the teams Seeker, who quizzed them on what they'd done to her poor Keeper and they were out in the open air once more.

'Well, that was certainly…interesting,' said Hermione. Harry had to agree with that.

Packages carefully shrunk by Lupin they continued on down the street towards Number 93 Diagon Alley, the Weasley Twins premises.

Hermione didn't even send up a token protest about how they really should get their school supplies first, she was as eager as anyone to see what the Twins had done with their shop.

They did stop off briefly at the Magical menagerie on the way, as Ron and Harry were both keen to buy some fresh Owl Treats.

Hermione, on the other hand, was distracted by the nearby Owl Office, and told Tonks she wanted to send a quick note off to her parents to let them know how everything was going, since Dumbledore didn't like them sending too many owls from Grimmauld Place.

Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes drew the eye like nothing else on the magical street.

It was a sight to take your breath away, and not _just_ because the cloud of purple smoke surrounding it made everyone choke and splutter. Or hiccup, in Nevilles case.

It was a garish red and orange monstrosity, which stood out from the Victorian architecture that surrounded it in the same brash, bold manner as its creators.

On the central panes of the large windows that took up practically the entire store front to either side of the entrance were three interlocking red W's in a circle of gold – clear evidence that the Weasley Twins would never forget their Gryffindor roots.

Inside, the shop looked to be in absolute chaos. The windows were full of bubbling cauldrons, busy belching out colourful clouds of vapour and spitting out sparks.

A number of Wildfire Whizzbangs had evidently gone off and were noisily chasing each other around the ceiling, which was hung with what looked like strings of onions, streamers of pink candyfloss and baskets upon baskets of unidentifiable stuff.

There was a small swamp in the middle of the floor, complete with some large boulders rising from the muck, presumably to act as stepping-stones. There were a number of young boys jumping up and down on them and giggling madly.

A rope bridge was suspended in mid-air over one corner of the store, for what purpose Harry couldn't possibly fathom a guess, but there was currently a rotund little man in a turquoise top hat and a feather boa dangling his feet off it. He appeared to be fishing in thin air.

The shop floor itself, besides housing a Portable Swamp, was as cluttered as the kitchen at the Burrow. There were towering piles of boxes, mounds of baskets, some absolutely enormous clear bubbles of Merlin-knew-what, and a number of brass hat stands.

At least Harry felt fairly confident that he knew what was on them, he was pretty sure they were for the Headless Hats.

'My goodness!' said Hermione, sounding just a little shocked. 'It's like Willy Wonka's in there!'

Ron, Ginny and Neville looked blank but for once Harry understood the reference.

The Dursleys may not have let him watch much television but the film about rivers of chocolate and food that could be beamed through the TV and other such delights had once captivated a young Dudley Dursley for months. In fact, he'd thrown some quite spectacular tantrums in an effort to force _his_ father to find him a Golden Ticket.

Along the back wall ran a full length wooden counter overflowing with trays of Canary Creams and stacks of Skiving Snackboxes. Here and there Harry could spot glass displays set into the wood, but he couldn't tell what was inside.

Behind the counter stood Lee Jordan, just handing over what looked like a bulging bag of Dungbombs to a young boy. Behind him was a mass of shelves reaching to the ceiling, cram packed with Wizarding Wheezes of all descriptions, and a set of wooden doors leading to the back.

One of the Twins was currently perched up a ladder, whizzing merrily from side to side to grab things and drop them down to his waiting brother. Or **_on_** him, even, as the Twin on the ground suddenly turned lime green and the one on the ladder cracked up.

Neville pushed open the door, which let out an ear-splitting screech, and promptly sank hip-deep into the stone floor.

Harry couldn't help but laugh as Neville heaved a resigned sigh and held out a hand for help. Really, he thought, considering everything the Twins had done to poor Neville through the years, he should have known better than to just walk straight in.

George Weasley bounded across the store, a broad grin on his lime-green face as he bent over to help heave Neville out.

'Fantom Flagstones, great aren't they! On special offer today. Yesterday it was Heat-Seeking Cream Pies. Hello Professor!'

'Hello George, how's business?'

'Absolutely booming, 'he grinned. 'We were doing pretty well even before the summer but since Hogwarts finished we've more than doubled our profits. It's still going too – we've been raking it in this last week! I reckon its going to peak just before the start of term and then level off again.'

Fred wandered over to join them. 'It's why we're looking into a Hogsmeade store. I mean, it's pretty obvious that holidays are going to be the busy times _here_ but if we could take advantage of all those Hogsmeade weekends…'

The Twins shared a look of mingled greed and anticipation.

'Well, the sky's the limit!' they chorused.

'We're hoping to find somewhere fairly soon,' continued Fred.

'Yeah, don't want to miss the all-important _first_ Hogsmeade trip.'

'Mum doesn't approve, says it's too risky.'

'Because we're earning enough here to pay the rent and a bit more, even on an off week.'

'But most of that goes back into the business, developing new pranks, buying the ingredients, paying the staff, etc.'

'If we get the new shop though, it's going to wipe out all the extra money we made this summer.'

'We'd need to double our output, or more.'

'Take on more people.'

'_And_ pay twice as much rent.'

'Hogsmeade may not cost as much as Diagon Alley but it still isn't cheap.'

'So we'd be on shaky ground for a bit, till we established ourselves.'

'But, we asked ourselves, what is life without a little risk?'

'It is, we answered ourselves, boring.'

'Predictable.'

'Unimaginative.'

'Even cowardly.'

'And since we have never in our lives aspired to such absurd values.'

'And since we have the utmost faith in our products.'

'And ourselves.'

'And since time is galleons.'

'And the bigger the risk the better the pay-off.'

'We decided what the heck, we might as well go for it.'

They grinned again.

'Of course, Mum's going to kill us.'

'Or make us wish we were dead anyways.'

'But, we have a cunning plan.'

'We've already decided, once we branch into Hogsmeade we're going to take a year to consolidate our position.'

'Expand the Owl Order side of the business.'

'Invest more of our time and energy on research on development.'

'And hopefully build up a nice fat financial cushion.'

The Twins assumed their 'innocent' looks.

'We're just going to make Mum think it's all her idea.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Twenty minutes later and Harry was stood beside the counter, a modest selection of items in front of him. He didn't need all that many of the products in store as the Twins had taken it upon themselves to send him regular samples of their merchandise.

All the same he had picked up a crate of the Splatterbombs Super Deluxe, some Assorted Mints (BedazzleMints, BewilderMints and more!), a Creeping Eye and a rather expensive Broomstick Cheat-o-Scope.

'We're trying to get that taken up by the Deapartment of Magical Games and Sports,' Fred said, tapping it with an inkstained finger.

'It's got a pitch-sized range and starts to glow and beep when someone's about to foul you. Sort-of a cross between a Foe-Glass and a Sneak-o-Scope, only we haven't figured out how to make it show _who's_ about to cheat yet.' He shrugged. 'We're working on it.'

There was a sudden loud BANG, and the wooden doors behind the till seemed to bulge outwards for a moment. Smoke crept out from around the edges and Lee staggered out, coughing madly.

'Too much sulphur?' said Fred, unconcerned. Lee could only cough in reply. 'We're experimenting,' he told Harry.

Ginny walked up with her own choices and smiled at her older brother. 'That and they really do just like the noise.'

'Naturally,' said George, coming up behind her. 'It adds atmosphere.'

'Well, there you go,' said Fred, handing over their purchases while Lee dealt with Tonks overflowing basket and George went to help Ron, Lupin and a little girl in pink pull Neville out of a Flowering Tanglevine which had taken a liking to him.

The green-fingered Gryffindor chose a smaller cutting in a little blue pot the moment he was extricated from its over-enthusiastic clutches and hurried over with the rest to pay.

'Do visit the next time you're in Diagon Alley, and watch out for us in Hogsmeade! Remember to mind the flagstones on the way out!'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

'_Now_ can we go to Flourish and Blotts?' pleaded Hermione, the instant they stepped outside. '_Please._'

'Not just yet Hermione,' said Lupin, pointing to a crooked little shop called Bitts and Bobbs. 'That's the best place to go for odd little things like your juggling balls. Come along, this shouldn't take very long and then,' he said with a slight smile to Hermione, 'I promise we'll head for Flourish and Blotts next.'

Hermione did not look terribly happy with the new plan. Obviously the siren call of the bookshop was becoming harder to resist.

From what Harry could remember Bitts and Bobbs was a sort of random little shop. It didn't specialise, like most places in Diagon Alley, in any particular thing. It wasn't a second-hand shop like Oddes and Endes, where Percy had found that stupid 'Prefects who Gained Power' book. Instead, it carried a little bit of practically everything.

There was a selection of Muggle stationary beside little potted tentaculas, trays of crystals and semi-precious stones, figurines of magical creatures, a range of candles, wizarding Wirelesses, newspaper racks, mugs with 'Worlds Best Witch' on them and sundry other unconnected items.

They soon found the juggling balls though they didn't look like any juggling balls Harry had ever seen before.

Hermione held up a set that looked like crystals, only there seemed to be a perpetual snowstorm going on inside them. Ron rummaged around in the cheaper selection and found a set that was bright orange and declared that such Chudley Cannon-esque juggling balls were clearly meant for him though he did seem tempted by a set of dark blue balls with an internal firework display.

Harry was torn – there was a wonderfully soft set that could have been made out of Owl feathers, one which contained scarlet and gold oil that rippled and eddied endlessly and a set the colour of a night sky, filled with clouds which lit up with a stunning thunderstorm.

In the end he went with the thunderstorm, because Ron insisted that that was the coolest set of the three.

Since neither Ginny nor Neville had had juggling balls on their equipment lists they were free to wander the store while the others made up their minds.

Harry was mildly surprised that Neville hadn't come back with a little Tentacula but maybe he already had one. Instead he had found a set of Magical Measuring Markers.

'They're really great, you stick them in the ground by your plants and they tell you when the soils too dry or too moist. I've been after another set.'

Ginny had bought her Dad a click-top ball-point pen for him to take apart and marvel at.

'I wouldn't put it past him to charm it somehow,' she confided. 'He still hasn't learnt from the last time!'

'See,' Ron said to Hermione as they left. 'It didn't take long at all, did it?'

She ignored him.

A stop at the Apothecary was also on their 'to-do' list, but everyone seemed to have decided not to push Hermiones self-restraint any further, and so they headed for the book-shop.

The teenaged witch let out a sigh of pure happiness as they entered and headed off towards a shop assistant, pulling a list from her pocket as she went.

The five of them had been warned not to get the whole of their booklists today as it might seem a bit suspicious to have a group of young wizards and witches just happen to pick up an entire set of Hogwarts books before the booklists even came out. Not to mention that some of the younger members of staff might conceivably insist that they weren't even Hogwarts students.

Bill Weasley and the Twins had agreed to pick up the rest in the next few days.

That particular decision had been very hard on Hermione. The knowledge that she would actually have to _wait_ for her new books was almost physically painful for her. She had decided to compensate by buying a lot of other new books instead.

Harry wasn't so bothered, so long as he got his new Defence book he figured that would keep him occupied until the rest of them arrived. Hermione, however, had insisted that he also get his Potions text, as the more time he had to read and prepare _before_ he had to do any of it front of Snape the better.

Harry could see her point.

Neville, naturally, was most interested in his new Herbology book, though he was also keen to get to grips with the new defence material. Ron had chosen the books on Enchantment and Wandless Magics while Lupin had managed to talk Hermione down to her Rituals text and the new books for Charms and Transfiguration.

It hadn't been easy.

Of course, she was supplementing these with her advanced books on Astronomy and Runes and, considering the glint in her eyes, probably a great many more. Hermione never had learnt how to say 'No' to books.

The three boys wandered deeper into the Defence section while Tonks helped Ginny find some of her fifth year books and tried to keep track of Hermione. Lupin stationed himself by the doorway and began browsing through the bargain tables.

Harry had never really had to think much about books before, he'd just bought what was on his booklist and then wandered off to do more interesting things.

He'd browsed, of course, especially in third year, because Flourish and Blotts was a fascinating place, and because he'd needed more information for his essays, but he was far more likely to spend his free time gazing through the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies.

'Oy, mate, look over there,' said Ron, pointing to a lurid red book with the title '_Constant Vigilance!_' in big black letters. He picked it up, opened it and swiftly slammed it shut. 'Urgh, you don't want this one, that's disgusting!'

Neville picked up one entitled '_Magic and the Melee'_ and turned it over.

'When you're outnumbered, outmanoeuvred and outclassed you need to know how to turn things around – Professor Vindicus Viridian, in his finest work to date, shows the way forward.'

'Sounds good,' said Harry, interested, and Neville passed it over while he bent down to pick up two copies of '_So You Want to Keep on Breathing_.'

'What about this one?' said Ron, reaching up to '_Know Your Advantages and Use Them Ruthlessly!_'

'An exhaustive work by one of Magical Britain's foremost experts on offensive tactics…An invaluable guide to coming out on top!' That sounds pretty good.' He groaned as he pulled it off the shelf and into his arms. 'And it certainly _feels_ exhaustive!'

Neville pulled out a slim volume called '_Be Prepared_.'

'Exercises to help you feel ready to face whatever's coming your way' – I like the sound of that.'

'That's probably enough guys.' Harry broke in. 'Remember, we're going to have everything in the library and anything the Room of Requirement comes up with as soon as we're back at school.'

Ron grinned suddenly. '_And_ we're Sixth Years now – NEWT students get _loads _more access to the Restricted Section.'

Having chosen enough defence books for the time being they skirted around the Alchemy section into Potions to pick up Harry's new book. From there, they headed into the sections on Enchantment and Wandless Magic for Ron's, which sat beside titles like '_Move it like Merlin_,' '_Real Men don't Need Wands,_' _and 'The Grimoire Enchantica_,' an enormous book with a cover of beaten gold and gems.

They ran into Ginny as they walked through Herbology, where Neville picked up '_More Magical Herbs and Funghi_' as well as a book _on 'Salves, Balms and Infusions, Making Nature Work for You_.'

'Where's Hermione?' asked Ron.

Ginny pointed to a shop assistant with a swaying tower of books in his arms. 'Do you really need to ask?'

'Mental,' Ron said, shaking his head sadly. 'Absolutely mental. We'd better go give her a hand, she'll never manage that lot on her own.'

Ten minutes later and it was clear that Hermione had bought more books than the rest of them put together.

'A little '_light reading'_ again Hermione?' Ron huffed softly as he heaved about an enormous '_Encyclopedia of Magical Maladies and Mishaps._'

'Well, if I can't get my Medimagic book yet at least I can do some background reading,' she replied serenely.

'_Background reading!_' Ron spluttered. He snatched another book off the counter and waved it around wildly for a moment before shoving it in the bag with the rest. 'Let me guess – _wider_ reading? And this one's actually _assigned_ reading, and that's _advanced_ reading – you're not going to have time for anything _else _at this rate you know!'

Hermione gave him a pitying look.

'_Some_ of us are very fast readers, and _some _of us find reading more important than messing around on broomsticks. I'm sure I'll have _plenty_ of time thankyou very much!'

The cashier looked up from the Calcu-Quill that was adding up the bill and asked 'Would you like those lightening for you?'

'Yes!' cried Ron and Harry at once. Carrying their own books wouldn't have been a problem but add in Hermiones and it all got rather heavy.

'I'm glad I'm not a Muggle,' Ron told Tonks as they left. 'Imagine having to lug all that about without magic! You'd end up looking like Crabbe and Goyle!' he hunched over and hung his arms like a gorilla. 'Knuckles trailing on the ground and everything!'

Lupin decided to wait just outside the door of the Apothecary as the clash of odours inside irritated his superior sense of smell. Truthfully, they irritated Harry as well so he could only imagine how awful it must be to someone with a werewolf's nose.

Ron and Neville were not taking potions at all, but Neville liked the Apothecary because it always had bits of plants in and Ron decided to go in anyway, because everyone else was.

Once inside Hermione took charge, directing people with the air of a bushy-haired general. Ron and Ginny went off to fill up her Potions kit, Neville was given the job of fetching things and Hermione dragged Harry off herself, to take his Potions purchasing firmly in hand.

Tonks escaped additional duties since she was on guard, and instead wandered nonchalantly over to the figure all draped in veils that Harry had seen earlier, in conversation with the headmaster. He still couldn't tell what it was.

He didn't have time to ponder this though, because Hermione was busy pushing him towards racks of potions ingredients.

'Now, I've read a few advanced Potions texts, so I have a rough idea on what we'll need though I think it's rather stupid to have us buying the ingredients before we've even read the books don't you? We could be missing out _loads_ of important things, though I suppose we can always get them later but its always so _infuriating_ when you want to make something and you realise you don't have everything you need and so you have to wait, isn't it?

Now, I know you need more beetle eyes, don't think I didn't see you flicking them at Mal…the blonde git, all last year! And another flagon of Murtlap essence, that's always useful. Do you want to go halves on a Unicorn horn? That should be more than enough for the two of us. Oh, vials!'

She had Neville fetch two sets of the reinforced crystal vials from the other side of the shop and peered critically at their labels when he brought them back.

'Oh good, there's a good, strong anti-breakage charm on them, that's useful, now where was I? We still need the cauldrons but we can pick those up on the way out, they're better value at Cauldrons for all Occasions anyway, now, we need some more dragon scales.'

When the basket was almost full Harry did ask if they really needed _quite_ that much, but Hermione stood firm.

'Practice makes perfect, and if you _want_ to be an Auror you're going to need a _lot_ more practice, and that means having enough ingredients to practice with.'

Eventually she declared herself done and they rejoined Tonks who was waiting for them at the door. Everyone else had decided to join Lupin outside, away from the smell.

Lupin was gazing at his watch as the three of them came out.

'I think,' he began, that we ought to start thinking about heading back. It wouldn't do,' he shot a smile towards Ron and Ginny, 'to push your mother too far.'

'But what about the cauldrons and the new robes?' asked Hermione.

'You aren't, well, you right now,' Tonks said quietly. ''It'd be a bit blooming suspicious for you lot to go getting Hogwarts robes when no one would recognise you as Hogwarts students. Madam Malkin never forgets a face, and she's a gossip. Word would spread and we don't want that. Besides, once everything wears off those two,' she jerked her thumb towards Harry and Ron, 'robes bought now wouldn't even fit! No, best to sort it out later.'

'As for cauldrons, the Twins can pick them up and send them along. With all their experiments I doubt anyone would remark on their needing a few more.' Lupin surveyed the downcast features of the teenagers and smiled kindly. 'Come on, we'll treat ourselves at Florean Fortescues before we head back, eh?'

Although Harry hadn't really noticed before he was beginning to feel a bit peckish. Breakfast had been some time ago and then they'd been busy shopping. It was definitely time for a snack, just something to tide them over.

Although Mrs Weasley would no doubt have kept their dinner warm for them he didn't want to wait until they were back in Grimmauld Place. Besides, no one in their right minds would turn down anything Florean Fortescues had to offer. Ron was already rubbing his rumbling stomach and declaring himself '_bloody starving!_'

Remus led the way up to the counter, where Florean himself, in a large stripy apron was piling scoops of nuts on an enormous Knickerbocker Glory.

'Remus!' he boomed. 'Good to see you! It's been a while – your usual?'

'Of course. So, how have you been?'

'Fine, fine,' said Fortescue, loading scoops of rich chocolate ice-cream into a chocolate cone. 'And yourself?'

'I'm doing alright,' said Lupin as he accepted what Harry now recognised as a large Chocolate Fudge Decadence. He bit the top off with a look of delight and mumbled 'Better now I've got this.'

Fortescue roared with laughter. 'You always were a bit of a chocoholic Remus, even in school. Now, who's next?'

Tonks quickly stepped forward to order a Pineapple Sunrise, Hermione a Five-Fruit Sorbet, Ginny a Triple-Chocolate delight and Ron a Hot Fudge Sundae. Neville said he wasn't all that fond of ice cream so he ordered a slice of Strawberry Cheesecake instead.

Harry had been studying the enormous menu that ran the height of the wall beside the counter and had decided to try a banana and ginger ice cream. It was surprisingly nice.

They walked to one of the umbrella-covered tables and sat down to enjoy their food and watch the people passing by.

Suddenly a dreamy voice from behind them said very clearly 'Hello Ronald.'

They all whipped round to see Luna Lovegood and a balding man whose remnants of hair stuck out at all angles and could only have been her father.

She was staring straight at Ron, which would have been somewhat less remarkable if he had looked anything like Ron. But he didn't.

'You, you can tell it's me?' he stuttered.

Harry could see Tonks surreptitiously pulling out her wand at levelling it at the pair of them from under the table. The young Auror was obviously prepared to use it at any moment.

'Of course. Shouldn't I?'

'Well, I'm sort-of in disguise!'

'Are you really?' She looked interested. 'I always thought the Ministry might send out its Assassins after you interfered with their Aquavirius Maggots.' She leaned forwards conspiratorially and whispered 'They won't want you to know their secrets.' She straightened up. 'Have you figured out what the marks meant yet? Dad reckons they could be some form of primitive code.'

'They weren't Aquavirius Maggots, they were **_brains,_**' began Hermione.

'And the Ministry has **not** sent assassins after me!' said Ron.

'Then why are you in disguise?'

'Because Harry doesn't want to be recognised!'

She tilted her head to one side and gave Harry a long, considering look.

'You really don't look all that different,' she finally announced.

He sighed. 'Yes, I know. Did you have a good summer?'

'Marvellous! We gathered a whole file of evidence on the existence of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and we even spotted one off in the distance one night. Or it could have been a Razor-Horned Goat – we never got close enough to find out. We're on our way to the paper – we're thinking of doing a Snorkack special.'

'And we have a deadline,' said the man beside her.

'And we have a deadline,' she agreed. 'Well, goodbye Harry, Ronald, everyone. If the Minstry spies come to ask any questions I'll deny I've ever met you. See you at Hogwarts.'

Ron stared after her and then turned his attention back to his Sundae.

'That girl,' he announced. 'Is seriously **_weird_**.'

Nobody disagreed. Instead they began to dig into their deserts as they enjoyed their last few minutes in Diagon Alley before they had to return to Grimmauld Place.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

_Well, there you go – lots of teenagers doing teenagery things, some Oliver Wood for all the fangirls and more Ron, for Prue, who keeps scribbling 'I LOVE RON' over my notes when I'm not looking. And sometimes when I am. I can't stop her, she's bigger than I am! What can I say, she's a rabid Weasley-fangirl. _

_**Shinigami**: not this chapter I'm afraid but soon, very soon…_

_**Jemma Blackwell: **well, he did notice the blonde curls. Maybe not quite how you wanted him to but he did notice!_

_**Jeaniebeanie33**: Thanks! And sure, help yourself to the courses, I like the fact that my story sparks off ideas in other peoples heads. Go for it and good luck with the story._

_**Locathah**: Sorry I didn't make this clearer – I'll have to go back and work on it. The Twins took only three NEWTs: potions, charms and transfiguration. They took the other courses as BATs, so they took the **course**, but not as a NEWT. I think I originally meant for them **all** to be NEWTs, but figured out that the chapter in OotP where they look at careers leaflets only mentions the same subjects you can take at OWL. As I try to stick to canon I had to tweak the original idea to get my subjects in. Thanks for letting me know. _

_As for the Twins, in OotP Umbridge has them cornered with their swamp and sends Filch to fetch the 'Approval for Whipping' form from her office while Harry is using the fire. He comes back, she tells the Twins she'll show them what happens to wrongdoers in her school and the Twins turn round and say 'I don't think so' and fly off. I even checked to make sure! It's easy enough to mix up fanon and canon. _

_And of course, big thankyous to everybody else who reviewed, I'm only sorry I can't reply to them all. Hope you enjoyed this one, let me know what you thought._

**_T.T.F.N Everyone! xxx_**


	12. The Hogwarts Express

_Well, my computer is virus infested so I haven't been able to get on it for a while, I'm lucky I finally the chance to go on the library computers. Here's the next chapter which goes out to **Stahchild,** my 100th reviewer!_

_Wow, 100 reviews, I was so happy. Just for you I'll see if I can work in a bit more of the veiled figure. And there's a fair bit of Luna in this chapter so you should be happy._

_Anyway that's enough from me, on with the chapter…_

**The Hogwarts Express**

The last week of August flew by quickly as everyone's attention turned to getting ready for Hogwarts.

Mrs Weasley had taken their measurements and fetched their clothes, Hermione had nearly ripped Bill's arms off when he brought over the rest of their books and the Twins had fetched the cauldrons and, to their mothers' surprise, not done anything to them.

'As if we would,' sniffed Fred.

'Bewitching our favourite investor's.'

'Our _only_ investor's.'

'Cauldron. It's just not on.'

'And Hermione knows far too many hexes for our peace of mind so we couldn't mess with hers either.'

'However,' George whispered, pressing a small muslin bag into Harry's hands. 'We did console ourselves with this. Just make sure it ends up in some unsuspecting Slytherin's cauldron eh?'

Fred winked over at him. 'Malfoy would do nicely.'

From the minute they had returned from their own trip to Diagon Alley Hermione had stepped up her study schedule with a vengeance. She had an extensive timetable, which she had helpfully handed out copies of to the three boys, who promptly 'lost' them.

Luckily she was so lost in the wonder of her new books that she didn't even notice that no one else was putting such zealous effort into preparing for their classes.

Unfortunately for Harry, Potions was a practical subject and so whenever Hermione felt the need to brew something up he was likely to be dragged away from whatever he was doing to help.

There were times when this was annoying, like when he really thought he might have a chance at beating Ron in chess - although, on reflection, given that he hadn't won a single game in over five years, he'd probably have lost again anyway.

He just kept reminding himself of the conviction he had felt on Privet Drive, of the need to be prepared, to be ready to face what was coming.

Besides, Potions class was rubbish, so learning anything he could beforehand was probably a good idea.

He'd even kept one or two vials of the potions he'd managed to make successfully tucked away inside a rather nasty vest of Dudley's in his trunk.

The Order seemed to be holding its meetings more often, worried that Voldemort was still lying low. That he was plotting _something_ was a given, but not even Snape seemed to know what.

Remus Lupin in particular was around much more frequently and had managed to find the motorcycle hidden in the debris of what had once been Mrs Black's bedroom.

He had spent an entire Wednesday afternoon teaching it to recognise and respond to Harry.

They had spent quite a few hours since exploring the various functions Sirius had built in. It had an invisibility booster, like the Weasleys old Ford Anglia.

A Turbo Boost button because 'Your mother got him into Knight Rider, which turned out to be a very big mistake. I took his wand away after he spent two weeks trying to make the motorbike talk. I'm only glad she never let him watch the A-Team, I can only imagine what he'd have done with that.'

That had meant a long conversation on what Lupin called 'classic' TV programmes. It turned out that Remus's mother had been Muggleborn and so he'd been around Muggle technology from birth, unlike Sirius, who despite taking Muggle Studies to annoy his family had always remained rather wary of technology.

'Lily used to tease him by waiting until he was watching a programme on TV and then use the remote to change the channel. She hid it down the side of the sofa so he never saw her use it. I'm not sure he even knew it existed. He never did figure out how she did it.'

There were also useful charms against theft and damage, rust and lightening strike and more unusual charms such as an Expanding Charm which allowed it to comfortably accommodate more than one rider or riders of different sizes.

'It only goes so far though,' Remus warned Harry. 'The bike can sit four easily enough, five at a push but no more than that, at least not safely.'

The black leather saddlebags were also equipped with Interior Expanding Charms and a Variable Temperature Charm.

'Generally used to keep the Chinese hot and the beer cold,' Remus remarked. 'That was about as far as Padfoots culinary skills stretched.'

There was more information in the stack of parchment covered in Sirius' familiar scrawl, diagrams of maneuvers Harry was dying to try out, notes on the bikes upkeep and lists of the other enchantments which had gone into its design, most of which were unfortunately impossible to try out in a bedroom in Grimmauld Place.

It seemed like next to no time before Mrs. Weasley was ordering them to pack their trunks and strong-arming Moody into doing a quick scan with his eye for those items which always seemed to disappear just when they were actually needed.

Before they knew it they were falling into bed, eager for the next mornings journey to Hogwarts.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

The trip from Grimmauld Place to Kings Cross was as simple as it could be, given that there were five young people, two owls, a rather large and disgruntled cat and all their various belongings to be ferried about under the watchful eyes of Mrs Weasley and the rather paranoid ones of Alastor Moody.

And the various other Order Members they drafted in between them to help.

It was something of a relief for the teens to finally board the Hogwarts Express and shut themselves away from it all.

'Thank Merlin that's over,' said Ron as he slumped into the seat by the window. 'Anyone for Exploding Snap?'

Having arrived early enough to be practically the first people on board there was plenty of time before they had to worry about the Prefect meeting and just when Malfoy would show his face.

Ron was still annoyed at having been forced awake at an hour he loudly complained should have been made illegal _years_ ago.

It wasn't long though before the platform became busy and the train began filling up. And almost everyone seemed to have a word or two for Harry.

Ernie McMillan stuck his head round the door to say hello and promptly claimed the next carriage up for himself and his friends, just in case anyone tried anything and they needed help.

Obviously the memory of their last trip on the Hogwarts Express was fresh in the Hufflepuff Prefects mind.

A group of young Gryffindors stood staring in the doorway for a good five minutes before Susan Bones shooed them off and ignored their protests they the next carriage down was theirs by promptly installing some of her Ravenclaw friends.

'Hopefully that'll buy you a few moments peace,' she said with a smile.

Unfortunately the peace didn't last long. Almost as soon as Ron, Hermione and Ginny had left for the prefects meeting Dennis and Colin Creevey exploded onto the scene, red-faced with excitement.

'Harry!' exclaimed Colin, pushing a gaudily wrapped parcel at him. 'I couldn't get this to you on your birthday cos we don't have an owl and I didn't know your address to send it in the post and I thought you'd understand and today would be alright really so this is from me and Dennis!'

'Ah, thanks Colin.'

The Creevey brothers were practically dancing with excitement as he ripped the paper off a small camera.

'We thought, maybe, cos I'm not always there then if something happens and you want a picture you can take it yourself!' Colin beamed.

'I can show you how to develop the film so the pictures move and I've got loads of books on photography you can lend though I've read them all so if you wanted, really, you could just ask me and I'd show you how to do it because I'd probably know.'

He paused for breath.

'Did you like the photo album Neville got you? I sent him some of my best shots.'

'It was fantastic,' Harry said sincerely. 'And they were really great pictures Colin.'

The younger Gryffindor almost visibly puffed up with pride.

'Oh, and we got you something else, too,' he continued, turning to hi younger brother.

'It was really Dennis's idea, cos we were in London and we knew you'd miss it cos of your Aunt and Uncle and we thought you'd like it cos he used to play with you so we got you one and got it signed and everything!'

At this Dennis proudly held out an autographed photo of Oliver Wood in all his Quidditch finery.

'He signed it 'To Harry Potter, the best Seeker in Hogwarts,' and said he hoped you won the cup,' squeaked Dennis, blushing as his voice cracked.

Actually, Harry realized as he looked down at the photo, he'd said 'You'd _better_ keep on winning the cup.' That's Wood for you, he thought fondly.

Colin was looking at the photograph critically. 'I bet I could do one just as good of you,' he told Harry. 'If I did maybe you could autograph one for me.'

Colin had been trying to get an autographed photo out of him ever since second year and he looked so hopeful that Harry somehow found himself saying 'Yeah, maybe sometime Colin.'

'You mean it?' breathed Colin. 'Wow, that's great Harry!'

Harry was already beginning to have second thoughts.

'But don't go telling everyone Colin. I don't mind doing one for you but if everyone else knew about it I'd never get any peace.'

Perhaps Colin remembered what had happened when Malfoy and Lockheart had overheard his request for an autograph because he nodded emphatically and said 'You can count on me Harry. And Dennis.'

He glanced over at his younger brother and found him looking so dejected that he ventured 'But maybe you could do one for Dennis too? Then I swear I won't tell anyone else.'

Harry sighed and rubbed his forehead. 'Alright, Dennis can have one but that's it alright? No more.'

'Thanks Harry!' Dennis almost squealed and they left the compartment excitedly discussing the details of the upcoming masterpiece shot of Harry they were going to take.

'I'm going to regret this aren't I?' Harry asked Neville.

'Probably,' he grinned. 'You made their day though.'

'Yeah.'

'And if you're lucky OWL year'll keep Colin too busy to bug you.'

'I don't think so,' came a voice from the doorway. 'He's already considering a scrapbook of your achievements and theres a group of younger students discussing what sort of photo opportunities you'll provide them with this year.

They were talking about you dueling the Minister and taming a Griffin when I walked past. Do you think that's likely?' Slightly protuberant eyes regarded him quizzically.

There really aren't that many Griffins _in _the British Isles unless you count the Bird of Bodmin Moor and you haven't been to Bodmin have you?' Harry shook his head.

And after the Department of Ministries I don't imagine the Minister would really _want_ to duel you, don't you think?'

'_I _think,' came Ron's voice from behind her, 'that you told us you weren't going to say anything about the Department of Mysteries. What if the Ministry's planted listening devices on the train or something,' he continued sarcastically.

She considered that for a moment before shaking her head. 'I don't really think that's at all likely Ronald,' she said reaching for her earrings. She turned to Harry and tilted her head so that they swung backwards and forwards. They looked like little blue spinning tops.

'Daddy had my Uncle Felix make them for me. He used to be an Auror but he's in Experimental Charms now. They're miniature Sneak-o-Scopes.'

She sat down. 'And besides, unless you've been Obliviated you already know what happened.' She paused and then leaned forward to stare deeply into Ron's eyes. 'Is that it? Have you had your memories removed? Did the Ministry spies catch up with you after all?'

'Oh for heavens sake!' exclaimed Hermione. 'No, we weren't brainwashed by the Ministry and our memories are perfectly fine!'

Luna didn't look convinced. 'But how would you know? You might just _think_ your memories are intact. These people are professionals, they wouldn't leave you memories of your memory being removed.'

Ron groaned. 'Talk like that makes my head hurt.'

Luna leaned forward again. 'That could be one of the signs of memory modification, we did an article on it once. Did it hurt when I mentioned the spies or the Department of Mysteries?'

She turned to Harry. 'You have to work out what's causing the episodes in order to find out where the memory lock is.'

'I am _not_ having an episode…'

'Really Potter, and I thought your taste in friends couldn't _get_ any worse than Mudbloods, Weasleys and miserable failures like Longbottom but it seems I was wrong. You're really scraping the barrel if you're relying on crackpots like Lovegood.'

'At least I actually _have_ friends Malfoy, not just people my father's bought.'

Pale eyes flashed. 'You leave my father out of this!'

'What's the matter Malfoy? Upset he can't buy his way out of prison?'

Malfoy drew his wand. 'I _said_ leave my father out of this!'

'Or maybe,' Ron spoke up, 'it's because his precious Master can't be bothered to get him out. Maybe he doesn't think he's worth it.'

'Don't you dare talk to me about worth you pathetic excuse for a Pureblood!' Malfoy was raging now and Crabbe and Goyle were right behind him, wands raised.

'Enough,' came a cool drawl. Everyone's attention turned to the dark haired Slytherin leaning against the wall of the train. 'This really isn't the time or place Malfoy, we're almost at the station. And you're currently outnumbered.'

A languid hand gestured at the crowd that had formed when Malfoy raised his voice, the DA at the forefront, all with their own wands drawn and hard expressions on their faces.

Malfoy turned back to Harry, angry spots of colour on his usually pale cheeks. 'This isn't over Potter,' he hissed. 'I'm going to make you wish you'd died with your disgusting dogfather.'

Ron and Neville grabbed an arm each as Harry surged forward, and Hermione quickly cast a Knockback Jinx, throwing the three Slytherins out of the compartment.

'I suggest you leave Malfoy, before I do something I won't regret,' she said, voice cold.

Malfoy sneered at her and stormed off as the crowd muttered angrily. The other Slytherin, who Harry belatedly recognized as Blaise Zabini, pushed himself upright and gave the Gryffindors a measuring look.

'I'd watch my back if I were you,' he said calmly before following the other three. Harry couldn't tell if it was a warning, or a threat.

'What did he mean about a dogfather?' asked one of the younger Gryffindors.

'Never you mind!' snapped Ron, glaring at the unfortunate second year. 'Prefects, round up your house, its time everyone was in robes. First years, go get your luggage. Now move!'

He reached out the arm that wasn't holding Harry and slammed the door in their faces. 'Merlin mate I'm sorry. C'mon, sit down and have a chocolate frog.'

The door to the compartment opened slightly and Dean Thomas poked his head through. 'You alright Harry? Bit forceful there weren't you Ron?'

'I thought he did very well,' Hermione said with an approving look in Ron's direction.

'I'm not saying he didn't Hermione, I'm just wondering if you want me and Seamus to help with the Prefecting bit since you three are busy?'

'Thanks Dean,' Ginny said warmly, shooting her boyfriend a grateful smile. 'I'll be out in a minute.'

'Take your time, we've got it covered,' he said and left.

Harry gave his friends a shaky smile. 'You can go if you want you know, I'm not going to break down or anything.'

'We know you're not,' said Neville, 'but what kind of friends would we be to just leave you after what Malfoy said. One of these days I'm going to rearrange his ferret-featured face for him. I'll show _him _who's a miserable failure.'

Harry laughed. 'I know you will Nev. Hell, you took on his dad last year, you could kick his ass if you wanted to.'

Ron grinned. 'Imagine his face if he knew you beat his father in a duel. Priceless!'

'Yeah.'

'We'll get him Harry, one of these days.'

'Yeah, I know.'

Ron punched him lightly on the shoulder. 'Better now?'

He smiled. 'A bit.'

'Good, we're pulling into the station.'

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_OK that's another chapter over and I finally got them to Hogwarts, you must all be relieved! _

_To everyone who loves Luna, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll make sure there's more of her to come._

_To **Meggplant**: I've been in that situation with fics myself so it was wonderful to know I was distracting other people from their work!_

_To **Sobek**: Thanks for that, dunno how I let that one slip by me – I've gone and corrected it so thanks again for letting me know._

_Anyway, hope everyone enjoyed it, let me know what you think. _

_Cheers,_

_Ewolf_


	13. Waiting

_Hello again all. I know its been a while but last month was trying to kill me off. I collapsed at work, went into hospital for surgery and a whole lot more I'm not going into because I'm trying really hard to forget all about it. _

_Anyhow, a few of you have commented that you wanted more action as there hasn't been a great deal of that yet. I always try and take on board constructive criticism so I've stepped things up a bit in this chapter. Hopefully this will restore your faith in the fic. It is going somewhere, honest!_

_This chapter goes out to **Pazed**, because they like my style._

_Here you go…_

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**WAITING**

The new sixth years jostled their way into the Great Hall with everyone else and promptly fell silent. Distantly, Harry heard the other students gasp and go quiet as they entered. Someone started to cry softly. Everyone stared around the hall.

It was a second year that broke the unnatural hush. 'What's with the decorations?'

He was promptly shushed by the new Head Boy, a Hufflepuff named Aidan.

'Someone's died,' he said. 'The last time they changed the tapestries like this was just after Diggory died.' He spotted the Headmaster and called out. 'Sir! Sir, what's happened?'

Dumbledore looked older than Harry had ever seen him, not only solemn but grim.

'Please take your seats everybody. I'm afraid there has been an attack. It seems Lord Voldemort is no longer willing to wait.'

There were cries from some of the younger students.

'But Sir,' Aidan continued, eyes wide. 'Who's died?'

The headmaster sighed. 'There will be an announcement immediately after the Sorting,' he said, as Hagrid entered the Hall. 'Now, Professor McGonnagal will be along shortly with the first years so if everyone would be seated?'

Noise erupted once more as everyone moved towards their places.

'What do you reckons happened?'

'But where's he attacked? There's loads more Aurors out lately!'

'What if it was Dementors?'

'Do you think You-Know-Who was actually there?'

'Please God don't let it be anyone I know.'

Professor McGonnagal entered the Hall just as the last of the second years sat down. The Gryffindor Head of House looked even worse than the Headmaster, her eyes red-rimmed behind her spectacles and her face pale.

'Are you ready for the First Years Headmaster?' she asked steadily. He nodded and she turned on her heel and marched out.

'Merlin!' Ron whispered, leaning closer to Harry. 'I've never seen her look like that!'

Dean, who was sat opposite Ron, nodded. 'She looked well shook-up.'

Hermione looked horrified. 'How bad is it?' she whispered. 'What's happened that could make her look like that?'

Most of the other Gryffindors were asking similar questions.

Harry felt a hand on his shoulder and turned towards the Hufflepuff table.

'Look at professor Sprout,' Ernie said worriedly. The Hufflepuffs absolutely adored their Head of House and the Herbology teacher was in tears. Professor Flitwick was busy patting her on the shoulder but even his ever-cheerful face was pale.

Scanning the High Table Harry realised that only Snape looked much the same as he ever did, sallow face grim in the candlelight.

At that moment McGonnagal returned, striding through the doors of the Great Hall at the head of a line of first years, and with the Sorting Hat and its stool tucked under one arm. She set them down as the new students gazed around them.

Most of them were chatting or gazing wide-eyed at the enchanted ceiling and the floating candles.

There were one or two though, Harry noticed, who obviously knew the significance of the décor and were frantically trying to make eye contact with their older brothers and sisters.

There was a moment's pause and then the rip in the brim opened and the hat began to sing.

_'Oh you may see just a tattered hat_

_That's sitting on this stool_

_But I've become far more than that,_

_A very useful tool!_

_I was there when the Founders thought_

_To bring what they each knew_

_And build a school to pass it on_

_Through time and down to you!_

_While I may make you a Gryffindor_

_Or Slytherin House member_

_Or Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw_

_I'm begging you, remember!_

_While each its faults and merits has_

_And great renown has won_

_Their greatest glories all were seen_

_When four were joined as one._

_For Hufflepuff, implacable_

_No obstacle could stop_

_And Slytherin, with cunning plan_

_Would keep foes on the hop_

_Inventive Ravenclaw ensure_

_They stayed a step ahead_

_While Gryffindor would give their all_

_E'en if it saw them dead._

_Together there was nothing that_

_The houses could not do,_

_And in these dark and troubled times_

_It all comes down to you._

_Now just because I sort you_

_As the Founders four intended_

_Does not mean that the rift that grew_

_Between them can't be mended._

_Tis better far to stand as one_

_And different strengths unite_

_Than stand alone in weakness and,_

_Divided, lose the fight._

_So now its time to look inside_

_And see where you belong_

_So step right up and put me on_

_Here ends my Sorting Song!'_

'Another warning,' Hermione said softly as 'Arturis, Sylvester,' became a Slytherin.

'At least we've made a start,' Harry said quietly. 'We've got the DA, everyone knows he's back, we're better prepared than we ever have been before.'

He glanced over at the teachers again. 'If they ever decide to let us know what's going on we've got a better chance of facing it than we did last year.'

'Talking of last year,' interrupted Parvati. 'Who do you think is going to be teaching Defence?'

'I think it's her,' Hermione said immediately. 'The witch sat beside Snape. I've never seen her before.'

Seamus leered. 'Can't say I'd mind having _her_ teach me a few things.'

The other Gryffindor boys grinned. While not extraordinarily pretty, when compared to the likes of Umbridge and Grubblyplank, or even McGonnagal and Hooch, it was clear the new teacher came out on top.

'Yeah,' Ron smirked. 'I think I'll be looking forward to Defence this year!'

Hermione 'accidentally' trod on his foot. Hard.

'Honestly Ron, you should be more concerned about whether or not she can teach than what she looks like!'

The two descended into their habitual bickering and Harry returned his attention to the Sorting as 'Pickering, Jamie' became a Hufflepuff.

It was true that it would be nice to have a decent Defence teacher but Harry was determined to learn despite whatever the new teacher might do. A good professor, as he had learnt last year, wasn't essential.

They'd proved, as had the many other students who'd come up to him on the train with news of their E's and O's, that they could make it on their own.

And Harry wasn't going to let anyone, not the teachers, not the ministry, not any other well-meaning adult, stop them now.

Harry was fairly certain he would keep the DA going in any case, they'd found far too much in the Black Library to let it go to waste and Harry was not prepared to just sit back and put responsibility for his safety into anyone else's hands.

Voldemort would be coming, and Harry had no intention of making it easy for him.

He cam out of his introspection with a jerk as Dumbledore clapped his hands and 'Young, Jason' joined the Gryffindor table.

'If I might have your attention please.'

There was instant silence.

'As most of you will know I traditionally take this time for a few brief words before the beginning of our excellent feast. I am afraid that tonight will not run quite as our usual start of term.'

He surveyed them all for a long moment, candlelight glinting off his glasses, before he resumed his speech.

'There has been an attack. As some of you may have realised, there were a number of Aurors on Platform 9 ¾ this morning. Unfortunately they were little deterrent to Lord Voldemort. Minutes after the train left there was an attack.'

There were cries around the Hall and Harry noticed more than one white-knuckled grip on cutlery that had been picked up in anticipation of the feast.

The Headmaster raised his voice slightly. 'There were a number of injuries and some few fatalities. The following students are to leave the Hall with their Head of House immediately.'

He gestured behind him and the four teachers stood up and moved towards the exits.

'Theodore Nott, Terrance Higgs and Susan Fitzwallis.' The Slytherin students stood up.

'Wayne Hopkins, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Laura Medley, Rose and Marie Zeller, Arden Harris and Georgina Vale.'

Georgina was one of the new first years and was visibly trembling. Harry thought she looked like she was about to throw up.

'Stewart Ackerley, Stephen Cornfoot, Li Su, Padma Patil, Marie Davidson, Alison Wright, Graham Fletcher and Dorothy Lafayette.'

Parvati had screamed when her sister's name was read out and now was shaking like a leaf. As Dumbledore turned his attention to the Gryffindor table she slid off her seat in a dead faint. McGonnagal hurried over to help her up.

'Euan Abercrombie, Rebecca O'Donnell, Nathaniel Cairns, Geoffrey Hooper, Parvati Patil, Jack Sloper, Patricia Stimpson, Kenneth Towler and Dean Thomas.'

Nathaniel Cairns, the seventh year prefect was white as a sheet but nonetheless paused to help up Jack Sloper, the young Gryffindor Beater, who was trembling so badly he could hardly walk.

There was almost total silence, broken only by muffled sobs, as the students left the hall. The headmasters sigh almost echoed.

'Tragedy has once more touched us at this school. It is easy to believe, safe behind these walls, that here the terrors of the outside world cannot reach us. That is not so, not in these uncertain times. This year will not be easy, not for any of us.'

He paused a moment before continuing.

'As you will no doubt find out in tomorrows Daily Prophet the attack at the station was merely a diversion, though a costly one for us. As the Minister pushed every available Auror to either the station or the Ministry there was a second attack.

At half past eleven Dementors swarmed Azkaban on all sides. A number of Aurors and Muggles from the surrounding areas were Kissed. Azkaban has been liberated.'

Harry turned in time to catch a triumphant sneer on Malfoy's face as the blonde Slytherin caught his eye and mouthed _'You'll get yours Potter!'_

'I very much doubt that anyone is in the mood for a feast. Therefore the start of term notices will be delayed until tomorrow.

Do not worry about rising for breakfast. Food has been delivered to your Common Rooms should anyone feel like eating. Prefects, if you would lead your students to their dormitories then that will be all for tonight.'

It was a subdued group who sat in the Gryffindor Common Room waiting for their housemates.

The first years had had questions, especially the Muggleborns, and the explanations had lasted hours before the other seventh year Prefect, Faith Fletcher, had ordered them to bed.

The second and third years had been sent to their dorms after some of them started falling asleep where they sat. As the clock crept past three the fourth years had also retreated, leaving the upper years to their anxious vigil.

Normally professor McGonnagal would have marched in and ordered everyone to bed and the absence of their stern head of house was unsettling.

It was almost four when an exhausted Dean Thomas, McGonnagals hand on his shoulder, stumbled through the portrait hole and into the common room.

'Dean!'

'You okay mate?'

'What happened?'

'Where are the others?'

'Where have you been?'

'Sit down mate you look like hell. Sorry Professor!'

She held up a hand for silence and looked at them with pride in her eyes.

'By rights you should all be in bed by now. However, I am glad to see you all pulling together for you housemates sakes.'

She pushed Dean gently into the chair Seamus had vacated. 'Take care of him Mr Finnegan, do not badger him too much and try and ensure he has at least a few hours sleep. That goes for the rest of you too.'

'Professor?' Hermione said as she turned towards the portrait hole. 'What about the others?'

'Some of them are in the hospital wing, some are at St Mungo's and a few have been sent home. It is not my place to say any more than that now. Hopefully we will have more news by tomorrow. Goodnight.'

The professor left and the noise level immediately rose as everyone started asking questions.

Ginny brought a glass of pumpkin juice over for Dean, which he took with a grateful smile.

'Thanks Gin, don't think I've had anything to drink since the train.'

'What happened?' asked Seamus.

'It was my Mum, she got hit in the attack. They don't think it was a spell, just some rocks or debris or something.' He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.

'She was unconscious but she's okay now, just a bit battered and bruised. My Dad's in a right state, he went off it, threatened to pull me out of school but McGonnagal talked him out of it.'

'Where's Parvati?' asked Lavender, voice shaky.

Dean looked drawn. 'I don't think she'll be back tonight. Her dad was hurt pretty bad protecting her mum and everyone on the platform. He's in St Mungo's. He swallowed hard. 'They're not sure he's going to make it.'

The common room was quiet.

'And everyone else?' asked Harry

'I don't know. I just don't know.'

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_Well, there you go, hope you enjoyed it!_

_Let me know what you thought, as always. Does the story seem a bit more 'on track' now?_

_To those who worry that Harry is never actually going to do something to live up to the summary of 'not being anyones pawn' it **is** coming. Its just that I don't write the worlds longest chapters so its taking me a little longer to get there. That and I tend to wander off down character roads I had no intention of going down when I started. Still, there is a point to most of them. _

_Now they're back at school things are going to start hotting up a bit so it'll start playing out a bit more from here on in._

_**Deh Vap**: not a snake, something soooo much better. I'm really looking forward to that chapter._

_**Nonjon**: hopefull this chapter has set your mind at ease a bit, and no, you shouldn't worry too much about the romance!_

_Anyway, enough from me – look forward to hearing from you and I'll cross my fingers and hope I get the chance to write the next chapter a bit quicker._

_TTFN_


	14. The First Day

_Well hello again. I hope you've all enjoyed the half-blood prince and that youre going to be continuing with this even though it is now officially a bit AU. I do plan on incorporating certain things into the storyline but I have my own plot so it's not going to be 100 canon compliant. _  
_Certain things will crop up and certain things won't – I guess you'll have to keep reading to find out what. Things I've already indicated, like the new lessons, etc, are going ahead despite the fact they don't fit in with the book. Anyhow I'll stop there and let you read the chapter. _  
_Note: the next few chapters are going to be packed with lessons and there will be some OC's. If any of them start looking a bit Mary-Sueish, let me know and I'll fix it._

**The First Day**

It was, Harry thought, the most oppressive meal he'd ever had in his life.

No one had bothered with breakfast, the Daily Prophet having stolen what little appetite anyone had managed to dredge up. Nonetheless they had all traipsed down to the Great Hall at lunchtime as no one wanted to stay in the Common Rooms where the absence of friends and housemates was so glaringly obvious.

Not, Harry thought as he looked around, that the gaps at the House tables were really any better.

The skinny sixth year Slytherin Nott was back, as were Arden Harris, Li Su and Patricia Stimpson. For all he knew some of the others could have returned too – he didn't know them all well enough to spot them.

He didn't think so though. There were just too many empty seats.

His eyes narrowed as they swept the hall. In fact, there seemed to be more empty seats then before.

Neville looked up from where he was shredding a piece of toast into smaller and smaller pieces and caught his eye. He turned to see what he was looking at.

'Some of them are in the Hospital Wing,' he said. 'Mostly first years. They had really bad nightmares so Madam Pomphrey gave them Dreamless Sleep.'

'How'd you know that?'

'Gran gave me stuff to drop off at the Hospital Wing.' He shrugged. 'Didn't even think of it till this morning.'

Harry couldn't blame him, their minds had all been occupied with darker thoughts last night.

Seamus glanced across. 'I heard the Robertson twins have gone home. Their uncle showed up about 11 o'clock last night and just pulled them out of school. They're leaving the country.'

'_I_ heard,' interrupted one of the third year girls 'that there were _loads_ of parents on the lawn this morning, all wanting their kids out of Hogwarts, that's where Dumbledore and the other teachers are now.'

Everyone turned as the headmaster and the rest of the staff came through the door at the back of the hall to take their seats.

Lunch was eaten in interminable silence. Harry felt sick and he didn't think he was the only one. The noise of the Headmasters chair scraping back came as such a shock that he actually jumped.

Dumbledore looked older than Harry had ever seen him, the lines on his face seemingly etched twice as deep as before and his eyes lacking their customary twinkle.

'It is with regret that I must inform you that several brave relatives of our students lost their lives last night. My deepest sympathies go out to their families.' He bowed his head for a moment in silence and then looked across the room sternly.

'Should I find that _anyone _within this school has been harassing those students who return to us then they will be immediately expelled.'

Although his gaze did not for a moment linger on the Slytherin table Harry felt sure the remark had been aimed squarely at Malfoy, who had been sniggering away to Crabbe and Goyle throughout the speech. The blonde Slytherin was looking like someone had cancelled Christmas.

'The Fat Friar,' he continued, gesturing at the Hufflepuff ghost, 'has kindly agreed to hold a remembrance service on Sunday in the grounds for all who wish to attend. Now, we must do our best to move forward, little though we may feel like doing so at this time, and to that end I have a few announcements.

Your timetables will be distributed to you now and classes are to begin straight after lunch. Thea Harman,' at this the witch Hermione had previously pointed out rose and smiled briefly before sitting back down, 'has kindly agreed to take over the teachings of Potions…'

A chorus of muttering immediately rose at this unexpected development and Dumbledore's blue eyes began to regain their twinkle and he said 'allowing our own Professor Severus Snape to share his expertise in Defence Against the Dark Arts.'

'YOU WHAT!' Harry yelped, thankfully slightly muffled by a chocolate éclair and the exclamations of the other students. Not muffled enough, however, as Snape turned his nastiest smile on him while the Slytherins banged their goblets on the table and cheered.

Harry heard a weak moan and looked around and then down, to where Neville had almost slid under the table. His eyes were glassy as they met Harrys. 'Another _two years_ of Snape. And I thought it was over,' he said weakly as he slid even further down, until all that could be seen of him was the top of his sandy brown hair.

Harry could've sworn he heard the words 'We're doomed, we're all doomed!' coming from under the table.

He was just about to reach over and help Neville up when a pair of hands grabbed his upper arm in a vice-like grip.

'_Two years?_' Nevilles words had obviously just penetrated. 'With _Snape?_' He shook his arm violently.

'You've got to set the DA up again mate, soon, very, very soon!'

Hermione and Ginny moved in to pry Ron's fingers from his arm and Hermione patted his hand comfortingly. Harry was still trying to rub feeling back into his arm.

'This weekend, Ron, promise.'

'Security measures both here and in Hogsmeade have been greatly improved over the summer but I ask that all of you remember to act with the utmost caution and care. Should you notice anything suspicious it is to be reported to a member of staff immediately.'

He paused. 'It would not be the first time that Lord Voldemort has attempted to interfere with matters here at Hogwarts. What is important to remember is that he has always failed.' He smiled at them. '_Always_. It does not do to let fear rule you. I have faith that each and every one of you is strong enough to face the future with courage, and stand firm against the darkness.

Now, Mr Filch has asked me to remind you that the list of banned items, which now includes a blanket ban on all Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, is available in his office should anyone wish to read it. A list of the new rules put in place to assure your safety has been pinned to the noticeboard in each Common Room. I must ask each of you to read and abide by them. Prefects, I trust you will see that that is carried out.

Now, if everyone is finished I am sure you are all eager to discover which exciting realms of knowledge you will be entering this afternoon.' He clapped his hands sharply and a scroll appeared beside each plate. Harry heard a distinct plea of 'please not Dark Arts, please not Dark Arts' from Nevilles position underneath the tablecloth.

'I believe that is all for the time being so off you trot!'

Dumbledore made little shooing gestures with his hands as everyone rose in a clatter of crockery and a scraping of chairs. As Harry tried to simultaneously read his timetable and avoid walking into people he could hear the headmaster talking quite seriously to Professor McGonnagal.

'Isn't it wonderful how many words there are to motivate people into movement? I've always been rather partial to 'scarper' myself, it brings back memories of my misspent youth. Of course 'vamoose!' is a marvellous word in its own right, don't you think? And 'tootle.' Speaking of which it is about time we tooled off ourselves. Coming?'

McGonnagal was looking thoroughly bemused, a common state for people who tried talking to Dumbledore. The man was definitely missing a few marbles.

He turned back and ran smack into Hermione, who almost snatched the timetable out of his hand.

'Oh good,' she said, handing it back. 'We've all got Wandless Magic next – I can hardly wait.'

Looking down at his timetable Harry saw that he had at least one of his new lessons a day, though considering how packed the timetable was it wasn't really surprising. He just wondered where they were supposed to fit in things like homework. And Quidditch Practice!

Ron was beaming at his timetable. 'Look at all these empty spaces! An extra long lunch on Monday, Tuesday morning free, a lie in on Wednesday _and_ two hours off in the afternoon, another long lunch on Thursday and another two hours off in the afternoon and how fantastic is this – Friday afternoon and not a single lesson! _Ace!_ Think I'm going to like sixth year.'

Harry looked over Hermiones shoulder and whistled. 'Where's your timeturner Hermione?'

'Oh honestly Harry, its not that bad!'

Maybe it wasn't, Harry conceded, since there was only one lesson in each slot, but it was certainly full. There weren't many gaps on her timetable and sixth and seventh year lessons ended later than the rest of the schools. Although at least they wouldn't be staying up late for Astrology any more.

'Well, we've all got Wednesday morning off, the hour before lunch on Thursday and the hour after lunch on Friday,' Harry said, checking his timetable again. 'Other than that it's all different.'

'Well, you and me have time off when Hermione's at her Rituals class,' Ron said. 'And Arithmancy.'

'And we've got a few hours together when Harry's in Herbology,' put in Hermione. 'And I think we've passed the classroom already.'

They turned around and backtracked down the corridor until they found the classroom, which was surrounded by almost the entire sixth year group of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs.

'Looks like Wandless Magic was a popular choice,' Harry remarked.

'Well we might as well go in,' said Hermione. 'The teacher isn't here yet but its better than waiting in the corridor.'

They trooped in and quickly claimed a set of desks near the front.

'Can't wait,' said Seamus as he took the seat behind them. 'Should be well ineresting, eh?'

'Indeed it will be Mr Finnegan,' came a voice from the doorway. 'You can count on that.'

The teacher was fairly young, in his early thirties by Harry's guess, with fair hair and somehow familiar blue eyes. Harry was sure he had seen them somewhere before but was given no time to figure out where as the Professor immediately began to speak.

'And can you give me an example of Wandless Magic Mr Finnegan?'

'Elemental Magic, Sir.'

'Quite right. The talent for Earth, Wind, Fire and Water Magics is fairly common among witches and wizards. Most people have at least one Elemental Talent although very few are capable of mastering its higher disciplines. You aren't likely to be summoning fireballs or casting tornadoes if you have elemental magic.'

Several people looked disappointed.

'No, as a rule Elemental Magic is far less flashy. For example, the strongest elemental magic in the school is Professor Sprout's. In fact it is quite rare to find a herbologist who possesses absolutely no talent for Earth Magic. Similarly, while many people enjoy flying or playing Quidditch those people who are most at home on the back of a broom, those truly exceptional fliers almost always have some air magic.'

Harry wondered suddenly if this was the explanation why being on a broomstick had seemed to come so naturally to him, that first flying lesson in first year.

'Water and Fire often crop up among seers, though there are few enough of those about and Fire is better known among Enchanters for some reason. Some feel that that Elemental talent corresponds to ones nature – fire denoting leadership qualities, air a creative imagination and so on but I'm not convinced. We will be testing for Elemental Magics later. Now, any questions so far?'

Megan Jones had her hand up and was chosen. 'Sir, is it possible to have more than one element?'

'Oh yes, quite common in fact. Professor Snape for example has absolutely no Air Talent whatsoever but does possess a fair amount of Earth, Water and Fire Magic. It is in part what makes him such an exceptional potions brewer – he has an instinct for the correct temperature, the exact moment to add the next ingredient and so on. Oh you can become a Potions Master without any Elemental Magic whatsoever but Professor Snape's talent does give him a bit of an edge. Anyone else?'

He looked around. 'Very well then, another wandless talent?'

'Parseltongue,' came Zacharias Smith's snide voice.

'Ah yes. Parseltongue is a very rare talent, giving the user not only the ability to talk to snakes but also a certain amount of power to command them. You'll need to know something of its history and what it does but as it cannot be taught we won't be spending much time on it. Another, Mr Weasley?'

Ron looked a little shocked to be called on, since he certainly hadn't had his hand in the air but he nonetheless managed to answer 'Metamorphmagic.'

'Another rare talent, though not nearly so rare as Parseltongue.' The teacher began. 'A Metamorphmagus is able to change their appearance at will and as it is an innate magic their disguise cannot be penetrated by magic. I was lucky enough to attend school with one and if it hadn't been for her habit of falling over her own feet we would never have been able to keep track of her.

Again though, this is a magic that cannot be taught. Can anyone name me one that can?'

This time, to her obvious satisfaction as her hand had been reaching further and further into the air with every question, Hermione was chosen.

'Occlumency,' she replied promptly.

'Very good Miss Granger. That is certainly a magic we will be spending a few lessons on. Occlumency and Legilimency are the twin arts of protecting ones own mind and breaching the defences of someone elses. The Dark Lord is recognised as an extremely powerful Legilimens so we will be covering basic methods of protecting the mind later on in the term.

Now, as our little quiz has no doubt demonstrated, there are a number of magics that involve absolutely no wand work whatsoever. We will be covering some of these in class, others you will merely read about. Should any of you wish to make a start on that reading now I suggest you do so at the chapter marked 'Overview of Elemental Magics.' When I call your name you are to join me here at the front for testing. Hannah Abbot?'

Harry doubted that anyone would was looking at their books as they watched Hannah step up to be tested. The Professor had laid a small iron box on his desk and flipped open the latch. There, nestled on a bed of black velvet were four eggs of highly polished white stone.

'Now don't be nervous, nothing to worry about. These are my testing stones, they're made from a crystal which is particularly susceptible to elemental magic.'

His fingers danced over the stones before he plucked one out. 'Now, if you would cup your hands like so and concentrate on the stone. Just focus on the stone. There we have it!'

The look of sheer amazed delight which spread over Hannah's face as the stone began to glow a soft green was a picture and Harry couldn't help but smile. Hannah blushed as the class cheered.

'Settle down,' the teacher admonished with a smile as he removed the first stone and replaced it with another. 'It'll be your turn soon enough!'

They watched the second stone for a long moment before he replaced it with the third. "No luck there then.'

There was no luck with that one either but the last stone, while it did not glow, was tinged ever so slightly blue as Hannah handed it back. The Professor popped it back in its box and made a few notes on a piece of paper before he looked up.

'Well done Miss Abbott, a fine Earth Talent and a slight Water Talent. Very well done. Now, Susan Bones?'

The testing continued, stones glowing blue and red and green and white to varying degrees.

Hermione had ended up with a moderate water magic and a slight fire. Neville, who had been petrified that he would get up there in front of everyone to discover he had no talent whatsoever, had a slight Water Talent and an Earth Talent so strong that it caused the stone to glow a brilliant deep green and the Professor to remark that it was one of the strongest he had ever seen. Harry noticed that Hannah Abbott in particular was gazing at the other Gryffindor with something approaching awe.

Soon it was Harry's turn and he was cupping a dazzling white stone while Ron applauded. 'The Professor smiled. 'A very strong Air Talent, not surprising considering the tales about how good you are on a broom. Now this one.'

The second stone glowed red. 'Not a bad Fire Magic either. Try this one.'

Harry concentrated on the stone but not even the faintest hint of a tint showed on its surface. 'Ah well, not to worry. And the last one.'

Harry was surprised and pleased when a tinge of green showed through and the class applauded. He was only the second person in the class to show three Talents, with Susan Bones having shown Earth, Fire and Water.

'Three Talents Mr Potter, very well done, just a trace of Earth Magic.'

Harry couldn't help but snigger as Zacharias Smith, who had all but swaggered to the front, discovered he only had a very weak Earth Talent and nothing else. He felt rather sorry for Ron though, who was last to be tested and was obviously worrying that he would be the only person there with no Elemental Magic whatsoever.

He knew what Ron was thinking because his hands were shaking slightly as he made his way up to the front and his freckles were standing out a bit more than usual.

'Ah, Mr Weasley, let's try this one first shall we?' The first stone didn't react. 'And this one.' Neither did the second. Harry noticed that Ron was looking rather sick and Hermione was leaning forward in her seat, fingers twisted together tightly.

It was with a sigh of relief that he saw the third stone begin to glow red and then the last glow white.

'Moderate Talents in Fire and Air,' the Professor pronounced as he closed the lid on his stones and made a last notation on his list. 'Well done Mr Weasley.

Right, we're coming to the end of our time together now and I'll be seeing you all tomorrow afternoon so for now the only homework is to read 'Overview of Elemental Magics' in preparation for our next class.'

He began to pack up his brown satchel while the students put away their quills and parchment and was almost to the door when he turned around. 'Any qestions?'

'Ah, Professor?'

'Yes Miss Brown?'

She coughed. 'What's your name?'

The blue eyes began to twinkle and he grinned as he said 'How very remiss of me not to mention it.'

Recognition hit Harry just as the teacher opened the door ready to duck out quickly, still grinning widely.

'My names Dumbledore. You can call me Professor Owen.'

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'I wasn't hearing things, was I?' asked Seamus. 'He did say Dumbledore?'

Everyone was still reeling from the shock as they walked into the Charms classroom.

'Well it makes sense, doesn't it?' Hermione said bracingly. 'After all everyone _knows_ Dumbledore's the best wizard at Wandless Magic since Merlin. It must run in the family.'

'Still a bit weird though,' put in Ron. 'I mean, can you imagine a Mrs Dumbledore? And little Dumbledores? Or teenaged Dumbledores?' He suddenly looked ill. '_Female_ Dumbledores?'

Seamus shuddered. 'I don't think I want to imagine that.'

Luckily Charms required all their powers of concentration as Professor Flitwick began to lecture on conjuring and by the time they left Harrys hair was sticking to his forehead from the effort, an effort which had failed to produce the cup of Green Tea Flitwick had asked of them.

Hermione was sipping hers from a china cup painted with delicate violets as they left the Entrance Hall and headed across the grounds to Hagrid's.

Their steps slowed as they caught sight of the long wooden trestle tables laid out in the field beside it.

'D'you think its too late to just drop the lesson?' Ron said pleadingly.

'Where's your Gryffindor spirit?' asked Neville.

'Back at the castle where the rest of me wants to be, that's where. I mean, last time he set us up one of these 'projects' of his it was those bloody skrewts!'

'Well, too late to back out now,' said Harry. 'Here he comes. Hi Hagrid!'

'Hello you lot, bit of an easy firs' lesson but don't worry, I'll have everythin set up fer next time,' he rubbed his enormous hands together. 'Can't wait. Now, gather round everyone.'

The handful of continuing students moved somewhat reluctantly towards the big metal vat the half-giant was stood beside.

'Now these her,' he began, plunging his hand in and coming up with what looked like a rat with slightly greenish fur 'are Murtlaps.' He picked up a silver knife and turned the struggling Murtlap over so they could see the slimy purple growth on its back.

'All I want yeh to do is grab yer Murtlap and cut the growth off like this.' He made a swift movement with the knife and threw the growth, which looked a bit like a sea anemone, into one of the glass jars of liquid on the table. He then put the Murtlap in an empty vat. 'An that's all there is to it!

'Yeh've got a lot ter get through, they're wantin them up at the Hospital Wing as well as the Potions Cupboard so let's get crackin, eh?'

'This,' Harry said firmly, up to his elbows in rats. 'Is disgusting.'

Ron nodded emphatically, then swore as he struggled with a particularly large Murtlap that had sunk its teeth into his finger. Even Hermione was wrinkling her nose as she dropped the growth into what smelt like pickling vinegar.

'You two!' Hagrid yelled at Crabbe and Goyle. 'Stop chuckin em about before I chuck the pair of yeh out of my class! Righ,' can anyone tell me what Murtlap growths are used fer?'

'Pickled Murtlap growths promote a resistance to curses and jinxes and a used in several potions, including Shielding Solution.'

'Right yeh are Hermione, five points ter Gryffindor. Useful little things, they are, but yeh don't want ter eat too many or yeh'll start sproutin purple ear hair.'

'I don't really want to eat _any_ of them,' Ron said, eyeing them as they floated in their jar and looking a bit green.

'An' can anyone tell me where Murtlaps are usually found?'

'By the coast.'

'That's right. 5 points to Ravenclaw, Brocklehirst. An that's where we'll be shippin the little beggars back to once we're done with them.'

The bells in the clocktower began to chime six and everyone laid down their knives and Murtlaps with relief.

'All righ' everybody, pack away. I'll see yeh Thursday, straight after breakfast.'

Harry and the others trooped away with relief.

'Good thing we made some of that Antiseptic Balm over the holidays, wasn't it Harry. I told you it would come in useful. I think we could all do with some,' said Hermione.

'And a bath,' added Neville. 'We might have time for a quick shower before tea though.'

It was only as they sat down to a meal where the main topics of conversation were new spells and classes and teachers, that Harry realised just how wise Dumbledore had been, giving them no more time to dwell on what had happenned but instead making them focus on other things.

There were still gaps at the tables, and people were still worried about their friends and housemates but the first shock, the sense of nothing in the world being quite the same ever again, was fading under the weight of normality.

As Harry tucked into a plate of sausage and mash with onion gravy, appetite restored, he thought the headmaster had been very clever indeed.

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_Ok, well that's the first day done with and I'm really looking forward to the rest of the week. Let me know what you thought of it. I'm seriously short on time right now so I won't do review responses just yet but they are all read, much appreciated and taken on board. I'll get back to you soon on the next set of classes._

_Cheers,_

_Walker-of-the-shadow-path_


	15. Wednesday

Hello again all, it's been a while. I'm taking a few days off work for my birthday so I've finally got a chance to update. I'm hoping our computer problems will be solved soon as we're hopefully getting a new computer in January. Fingers crossed for that.

_This chapter goes out to **Gryffindor's Newsie,** for enthusiasm, ice-cream, chocolate and sugar quills, mmmmn Sugar Quills._

_Disclaimer: **four-sided-triangle** was the first to notice that I sometimes borrow other peoples names so I would like to mention L.J Smith's Nightworld, The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper and Sherrilyn Kenyons Darkhunter Series. Not making any money off them either, just borrowing a few names and being inspired by their characters._

**Wednesday **

Wednesday, for everyone except Neville, who had 2 hours of Household Magics first thing, began late as everyone caught up on the sleep that had been hard to come by the night before.

There was good news at breakfast too, the first years had been released from the Hospital Wing, including Georgina Gayle, whose mother had gone into premature labour after she was injured in the attack.

Luckily the Mediwizards had been able to save both mother and child and Georgina was happily sharing wizarding photos of the new arrival that had been sent over by Express Owl.

The first lesson, an hour before lunch, was Apparition, which Harry was looking forward to despite the fact that he couldn't take his test until next year. Ron was looking forward to it even more, as he would be eligible to take his test in March.

'Then Fred and George had better watch out. We'll see who's popping into who's bedroom then!'

'Might be a bit dangerous just popping into the Twins room though,' Harry pointed out. 'I mean, they've probably booby-trapped it.'

Unfortunately their first Apparition meeting was unutterably boring. The Ministry Instructor had droned on and on about the rules and regulations attendant on teaching underage wizards to apparate, the fines for underage apparition, misuse of apparition and apparation in front of Muggles and the appropriate authorities to contact if you lost parts of yourself in transit.

He had then 'talked them through' Apparition, making them recite 'Destination, Determination, Deliberation' over and over again while he went through the Three Stages of Apparition.

By the end of the hour Harry was wondering if Wilkie Twycross was some sort of descendant of Professor Binns. To his great relief, however, the class were told that from Monday the Apparition lessons would be more practical in nature as by that time the headmaster would have arranged to lift the anti-apparition wards over that area of the castle.

'You have a week in which to begin reading your Apparition Theory book, I suggest you use it wisely. I would advise you reading the handbook carefully as there will be a written exam before you are permitted to apply for your license. I shall see you all on Monday.'

Lunch passed quickly as Harry, Ron and Hermione were all looking forward to their first Enchantment lesson while a rather dusty Neville was planning to visit Professor Sprout to discuss which plants he should put in his pond.

Enchantment was held in a large room in the East Wing of the castle, down a narrow and twisting corridor. The first thing they saw as they entered was a pair of pineapples which appeared to be waltzing around the Professors desk.

The Professor himself was stood in a dark corner of the room, fiddling with a grandfather clock. He was tall and thin, with hawk-like features and a shock of white hair though he didn't appear to be terribly old.

He didn't bother turning around as the class filed in but suddenly asked 'Can anyone tell me which of those pineapples is enchanted?'

There was silence. 'I shall take that as a no.' He pointed his wand over his shoulder and said 'finite incantatem.' One pineapple fell over and rolled off the desk but the other danced on. 'There is your answer.'

He turned around and walked over to pick up the fallen fruit. 'A charm or incantation affects an object only as long as the charm itself lasts. They can be removed with the correct counterspell, they can wear out and with some charms you need only break the casters concentration to break the charm itself.

Transfigure an object and while it's shape may change the object itself does not. A gerbil in the shape of a goblet is still a gerbil, no matter how little it may look it. Charms and Transfigurations only _affect_ an object, Enchantments are an integral _part_ of the object.

This is why many Enchantments are laid during the object's making, with swords being enchanted during forging or brooms during crafting as this facilitates the enchantments integration.

As they are a key component to the object itself an Enchantment can be nigh on impossible to break. There are no simple counter-spells which would work against a broad spectrum of enchantments. Each enchantment is a highly individual crafting and as such must be individually studied and it's components broken down before you can formulate a counter-spell specific to that single enchantment.

As with any sort of spell of course the stronger and more complex the enchantment the greater the time, talent and power necessary to break it. Should any of you place a simple enchantment on a quill say, then it would easy enough for any of the professors here to break it. Should the headmaster place a complex enchantment on the same quill, pouring his strength into the project, then I don't believe there is anyone capable of breaking it.

My name is Professor Merriman Lyon. In the coming weeks we will be studying the theory behind Enchantment. We shall then be spending some time studying enchanted objects themselves and learning how to identify them and the enchantments which have been laid upon them. In a few weeks, if I feel you have sufficiently grasped these basics, I will begin teaching you a few simple enchantments.

Now books out and begin. I expect you to have read and comprehended the first five chapters by our lesson on Friday.'

Uncomfortably reminded of Umbridges lessons Harry got out his copy of 'In the Footsteps of Merlin' and began chapter one 'A Brief History of Enchantment' while the Professor turned his back on the class and returned to his clock.

He was distracted when a wad of parchment zoomed forcefully into the side of his face from a smirking Malfoy's side of the room. He didn't even have chance to open it before Professor Lyon was stalking down the line of desks to Malfoy's seat.

'Mr Malfoy,' he said softly, leaning over the desk. 'You were _allowed_ into this class because your exam results indicated you were capable of the work. But enchantment is not a game Mr Malfoy, it is a serious subject. We will be handling objects of great value, items of great frailty and things which are extremely dangerous to those who do not know what they are doing.

People, in other words, like _you_, Mr Malfoy.

If you do not possess the mental maturity to study a subject like this a t NEWT level then you can leave my class _now_.'

Harry looked at the teacher with renewed respect. Fred and George hadn't been kidding when they said Lyon wasn't a professor to cross – Malfoy looked almost as cowed as he had done around Moody in Fourth Year.

Piercing gray eyes swept the room.

'That goes for all of you. I will tolerate no messing around in this classroom. You are here to learn, not act like children. This is your first, and last, warning. The minute you choose to ignore it is the minute you leave my class for good. Do we understand each other?'

'Yes Sir!'

'Good. Oh and Malfoy, 10 points from Slytherin.'

Harry went back to his reading with a smile on his face.

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'Did you see the look on Malfoys _face_?' Ron said happily as they left the room.

'Wasn't it _fascinating_' Hermione rhapsodised about the lesson. 'Chapter Five was particularly interesting, don't you think?'

'Chapter Five?' Ron said blankly. 'I haven't even finished Chapter One!'

Hermione looked horrified. 'Well you've got an hour before we meet up for Wandless Magics so you'll be able to catch up. Come on Harry, we're going to be late for Potions. See you in an hour Ron.'

It felt very odd to be headed into the dungeons without any expectation of Running into Snape. Stranger still to be looking forward to Potions for once.

Unfortunately not everything unpleasant about Potions had been left behind after OWL's. Malfoy was still there and was obviously still simmering over his set down in Enchantment.

'Just because you got lucky in the exam doesn't mean you're going to make it in Potions Potter,' he sneered. 'The Harmans are probably the oldest pureblood family in the world. In fact,' he smirked 'I think we're actually related to them.'

He lowered his voice and stepped in close. 'You remember my Aunt Bellatrix Potter? The one who shoved her blood-traitor cousin through the Veil? Well from the rumours I've heard Harman's even worse and you've signed on for two years under her thumb.'

He laughed and it was all Harry could do not to grab hold of his throat and squeeze until he turned purple. Instead he concentrated on setting out his scales and Potions book, a task made more difficult by the fact that Malfoy and Parkinson took the next desk along.

There were four Slytherins in the class – Malfoy, Parkinson, Zabini and Nott, a handful of Ravenclaws and Ernie McMillan, the only Hufflepuff in the group.

Professor Harman was at the front of the class writing on the blackboard and gave them a warm smile as they took their seats.

'Hello and welcome to NEWT level Potions. As we only have an hour this lesson we won't be doing anything too challenging. If you turn to page six you will see a potion we found particularly useful doing my own NEWTs called Mindclear.

A potion to promote general well-being, it leaves you feeling refreshed and clear headed, like a particularly good night's sleep. Particulalry useful after hours of studying when you feel tired and muddled it should not be taken to excess as it begins to cause hallucinations, particularly if it is taken when you haven't been getting much sleep. It is also forbidden to use just before an exam.

Now, while the potion itself is not too difficult to make it will allow me to observe how you treat a variety of ingredients and tend to the potion, allowing me to evaluate your skills. You have 50 minutes, beginning now.'

There was a scramble for the Potions Supply Cupboard as students rushed for those ingredients not inside their potions kits and began to finely grate Unicorn Horn and roughly chop sage.

Professor Harman wandered through the class, pausing to advise Ernie on his stirring technique and watching Zabini add lemongrass and sunstone as she checked that the potion turned the correct shade of green.

It was while she was on the other side of the class that there was a muffled _'Whump'_ and Harry was suddenly covered in foul smelling green sludge. He turned to glare at a smirking Malfoy who had mysteriously managed to avoid getting any of his potion on himself when it exploded.

'Sorry Professor,' he said insincerely. 'I must have knocked my vial of doxy stings in.'

She hurried over to Vanish the sludge, though Harry's skin itched like crazy and the smell lingered. She peered suspiciously into Malfoys cauldron.

'Well, no harm done other than two potions ruined. Potter you'll need to rub some camels milk into that otherwise you'll end up with scales, but that can wait until after the lesson. Malfoy, you'll have to share with Parkinson and Potter, you're with Granger.'

Harry held up the sodden remains of his potions book and looked with dismay at his ruined pile of ingredients.

'There are a few old potions books at the back of that cupboard,' said the professor. 'You go find one and I'll salvage what I can.'

He finally found a battered copy of Advanced Potions Making that wasn't completely falling apart and hurried back over to his desk, taking the opportunity to bump forcefully into Malfoy and drop a small muslin bag into Parkinson's cauldron as he passed.

'Well at least it didn't ruin anything too expensive to replace,' Professor Harman said as he came back. 'Although you will need to visit the Apothecary for some more Pixie Dust. Now, go and help Miss Granger with her potion, you only have ten minutes left.'

Harry devoutly hoped that whatever Fred and George had put in that bag was good as they finished off their potions and were permitted a ladleful before leaving. He was a bit disappointed that Malfoy and Parkinson did not immediately turn into pink Pygmy Puffs or something but didn't have time to wait around for results. Instead he and Hermione rushed to Wandless Magics.

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Today we're going to start concentrating on Fire and Water. Those of you without these magics can observe and read the first two chapters on them and their uses.

First thing to do is cup your hands as you did when you held the testing stones, with your wand hand on top. Remember – wands, testing stones and other such things only act as a _focus_, the power is a part of you.

Now close your eyes and concentrate on your palms. Think of what water or fire mean to you. Think of images, memories, imagine yourself immersed in your element. If you are a Fire Talent I want you to imagine warmth travelling up your arm, and heat pooling in your palm.

Water Talents, you are to concentrate on a cool feeling travelling up your arm and pooling in your hand. _Concentrate._ Concentrate on the heat or the coolness and allow it to fill your hand.'

The words were hypnotic and Harry felt lulled into his memories of fire. His earliest memory, a flash of green fire and cold, high laughter, later, Uncle Vernon burning his Hogwarts letters, they weren't very happy memories.

Hermione setting Snape on fire in first year when he was in danger of falling off his broom, that was _still_ funny. Harry remembered laughing with Ron over it. And that little pot of flames Hermione used to carry about, before they'd learnt warming charms, to huddle around in the cold, whatever happened to them?

Blue flames flickering in Remus's hand when the train went dark, did that mean Lupin had Fire Magic?

Flames hissing in the Goblet of Fire, a fireball from the snout of a Hungarian Horntail, Quirrel conjuring fire to prevent his escape in first year, Fawkes arriving in the Chamber of Secrets in a burst of flames, his shock at Fawkes Burning Day, his first experience of Floo Powder, seeing Sirius's head in a fire, sneaking into Umbrideges office to stick his own head in the fire.

Small flames on candles, in pumpkins at Halloween, in torches and under cauldrons – how had he never realised how entwined his life was with fire? _Fire_. Around him, inside him, filling him up, until…

'Well done Mr Potter! 10 points to Gryffindor!'

Harry opened his eyes to a bright flame dancing over his palm which quickly sputtered and died.

You must have some exceptionally strong memories of fire to conjure it up so quickly, well done.'

Professor Owen peered into his face and smiled. 'You look done in, not unusual after your first piece of Elemental Magic.' He waved his wand and a glass of pumpkin juice appeared.

'Drink that and get started on reading the section on fire. I doubt you could manage any more practical work.'

Harry turned to the book with enthusiasm, eager to find out what this new power could do. He'd only finished the first chapter before Hermione managed a tiny flicker of yellow light and a few pages later Ernie conjured a palmful of water.

He gave Harry a triumphant grin. 'Wonder if that potion had anything to do with this? Clear minds must have given the three of us a bit of an advantage eh?'

Harry felt slightly put out that he hadn't managed to come first without the aid of a potion, it seemed a bit like cheating really. Then he reminded himself that Hermione had had the potion too and _she_ hadn't been the first to show her Talent.

For once he had actually beaten her in class. He decided it was alright to feel just a little bit smug about that.

By the end of the class Susan Bones was the only other person to 'Manifest' her Talent, though Ron was convinced he was close as his palm had gotten very hot. Neville, on the other hand, wasn't sure if the slight dampness of his palm came from a Talent with water, or just from nerves.

'Alright everyone, I want you all to practice concentrating on your element. That includes Wind and Earth Talents. Those of you with Fire or Water magic are to read the first three chapters in the section on your Talent. Class dismissed.'

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Harry's stomach was grumbling loudly as they left the class and headed to the hall, still discussing Elemental Magic. He was distracted when Michael Corner stopped to hand him a rolled-up scroll.

'What's that about?' asked Ron.

'Dunno,' Harry replied as he opened it.

It read '_Dear Harry,_

_I would like to start our private lessons as soon as possible. Kindly come along to my office at 8pm. I hope you are enjoying your new lessons._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore._

_P.S. I enjoy Acid Pops'_

'Acid Pops?' asked Ron.

'The password to his office I think.'

'What d'you reckon he'll be teaching you?'

'Occlumency probably.'

'It could be some cool new jinxes and stuff,' Ron said eagerly. 'For fighting Death Eaters off with, stuff they wouldn't know.'

'Anything they don't know would probably be even more illegal than the things they _do_ know Ronald,' put in Hermione.

'Not necessarily. I mean, it could be stuff he invented himself, stuff he didn't tell anyone and now he's going to pass it on to you!'

'But it's probably just Occlumency.'

All the same Harry was at the gargoyle a few minutes before 8. He'd done his best over the summer but since he didn't quite understand what he was doing he couldn't be sure he was doing it right. He needed a teacher, and he knew it.

'Come in Harry.'

As he entered Harry saw a flash of multi-coloured veils in the fire as their owner disappeared. He wondered again just who, or what, the veiled figure was.

'Do take a seat dear boy. And a biscuit. I hope you have been enjoying your new classes?'

Taking a seat in front of the desk, and a custard cream from the proffered plate, Harry grinned.

'They're pretty good, especially Wandless Magic. Why didn't you tell us your grandson or whatever was going to be teaching?' He went to take a bite of his biscuit and paused. 'These aren't Canary Creams are they?'

The headmaster chuckled. 'No, they have absolutely nothing to do with the Weasley Twins, and I'm afraid Owen is more of a 'whatever' than a grandson. In fact he is my great-great-grand-nephew.'

Harry thought hard for a moment. 'Does that mean he's your brother…Aberforth wasn't it? The guy with the goat?'

He wondered if the headmaster would find the goat reference impertinent.

'Yes indeed, and well remembered Harry. Owen is Aberforth's great-great-grandson though luckily the two of them are not much alike.' He lowered his voice confidentially. 'Aberforth has been in trouble again you know. An incident involving several sheep and a particularly bemused cow.'

He sighed and shook his head. 'I do wish he would learn to keep his hand's off other peoples livestock.'

Harry stifled a laugh.

'My dear boy, with Voldemort and his associates becoming more active, being frequenly called to the Ministry and trying to run the school I fear there will not be as much time as I had hoped to devote to these lessons. Voldemort has been rather quiet in your mind of late, has he not?'

'Yeah, I mean, I've barely been getting flashes since, ah, since the summer.'

'I imagine he did not find his experience inside your mind at the Ministry any too pleasant Harry, however, we cannot trust that he will never again attempt to use the link he forged between you. To that end I have secured a tutor in Occlumency for you.'

He peered over his half-moon spectacles.

'I do trust that you will try a little harder than you did last year though I hope that the lack of animosity towards your tutor will help somewhat.'

Harry felt that this was a bit unfair since Snape had been acting with at _least_ as much animosity towards him last year and besides that, the greasy git had started it. He decided not to point that out to the headmaster though.

'Our own lessons, when we have the chance to meet, will focus more on the old adage 'know thine enemy,' and I believe that is your tutor now.'

Indeed the flames on the hearth were burning green as a figure in patched and fraying wizards robes stepped out and knocked ash off his shoulder.

'Profess, ah, Remus!'

The werewolf laughed. 'Much better Harry, though for once the Professor would actually apply as I'll be teaching you again.'

'You're a Legilimens?'

'And an Occlumens, though not nearly as accomplished a one as Professor Snape.'

Harry snorted in disgust.

Dumbledore eyed him with something like disappointment in his eyes.

'Despite your feelings towards him Harry, Professor Snape is an extremely talented Potions Master and Legilimens.'

'Maybe he is Professor but he isn't a very good teacher,' Harry said with a great deal of restraint, hands clenching white-knuckled on the arm-rests of the chair.

The headmasters face settled into stern lines.

'As you yourself were not the best of students?'

Harry leapt to his feet, green eyes blazing.

'At least I tried. That _git_ is so caught up in hating my Dad he didn't even bother trying to teach me.'

He slammed the book down on the desk between them.

'Maybe I'm not much of a student headmaster but I've read that book and what Snape did to me is classed as Mental Rape, of a minor, and that's punishable with a 5 year sentence in Azkaban!

He didn't prepare me, he didn't tell me how to guard my mind, he didn't bother with any of the basics, he just ripped into my head to find every nasty little memory he could taunt me with! He's worse than the bloody dementors!'

'In his defence Harry you do seem to pick up the practical side of things more easily.'

'PRACTICAL! Harry yelled. 'IT WOULD'VE BEEN JUST AS BLOODY PRACTICAL TO LET THE BLOODY DARK LORD KEEP BREAKING INTO MY HEAD AND HOPE I COULD FIGURE IT OUT ON MY OWN! IT PROBABLY WOULD'VE BEEN BETTER! AT LEAST THEN ONLY _ONE_ PERSON WHO HATES MY FREAKING GUTS WOULD'VE BEEN IN THERE!'

'Professor Snape was only trying to help you be prepared Harry.'

'HELP? _HELP!_ HE WASN'T ANY BLOODY HELP AT ALL. HOW WAS WEAKENING ANY DEFENCES I MIGHT HAVE HAD A HELP? HOW DID HIM INVADING MY MIND HELP STOP VOLDEMORT FROM DOING IT? _IT DIDN'T_.' He let out an angry laugh.

'IN FACT, LAST YEAR, VOLDEMORT WAS A HELL OF A LOT _NICER_ TO HAVE IN THERE THAN SNAPE!'

Harry stood for a long moment, chest heaving, glaring at the headmaster before he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room before he gave in to the urge to break things. At least this time the door wasn't locked.

As he headed down the stairs he thought he heard Dumbledore say 'Well, that didn't go quite as well as I expected.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

_A little bit more CAPSLOCK!Harry there which should please those of you who thought he'd disappeared. _

_As you may have noticed I'm taking a day for each chapter at the moment. This isn't going to continue all through the fic, just over the first week so you can see all the new lessons, characters and so I can lay the foundations of the rest of the plot. After that things will be seriously hotting up._

_**Nonjon** – you weren't the **only** one bugging me for more action. Just the loudest. (grins)_

_**Hakkai- Goijyo-Goku-Sanzo** – as you can see Harry has, ah, 'shared his feelings' about Snape with the headmaster and as for more on the new teachers, new lessons, etc, well it's all coming up._

_**Lina Thanatos** – of course you can critisise me, I like criticism. Gold would be a nice colour but I just feel that most people would connect green to earth magic more easily so I've got to leave it as is really._

_**Deh-Vap** – don't worry, you'll be seeing more Rebellious!Harry soon and he's going to be doing a lot more to prepare himself, including dragon-hide and dark arts books._

_**Joou Himeko Dah** – I agree, I wanted to more about the behind-the-scenes stuff in HBP so I go more into description to let everyone know what's happening. Hopefully you'll enjoy the rest of the fic too._

_**Four-sided-triangle** – If you had the Simi you wouldn't have a problem with Voldie, she'd just barbecue him! Though I don't think even BBQ sauce would make him taste good. Whose your favourite hunter? _


	16. Grim Thursday

_Hello again all. It's been quite a while since my last update – so sorry, time must've really been slipping away from me. I've recently moved out & I'm being trained for a change at work so it's been very busy. Anyway, here is a nice long chapter and to make up for it all I promise that next chapter will see a return of TV!Snape from Chapter 1._

_This chapter goes out to all of you who've stuck around this long. Thanks for being so patient! xxx_

Grim Thursday

Harry knew, as soon as the owls began, that Thursday was going to be grim. The Prophets picture of the devastation on Platform 9 ¾ was horrific as the black-and white images of Mediwizards and Aurors combed the debris.

Harry lowered the sausage speared on the end of his fork, appetite gone. He wondered for a moment about the wizarding pictures. When a person could move out of their frame or get annoyed at you for spilling something on the picture, how much could they feel?

He shook his head; he didn't want to think about it. He turned the page and names seemed to jump out at him where before there had only been statistics and they'd been bad enough.

The Prophet was listing the dead.

_Max Wolfe_

_William Ferens. _

Harry vaguely remembered him, a burly Gryffindor in Wood's year. He was Nathaniel Cairns step-brother.

_Miriam Hopkins_

_Amanda and Susan Madley_

_Francis Zeller_

_Steven Ackerley_

_David and Leanne Wright_

_Andrew Towler_

_Julius Nott_

_Angela, Richard and Thomas Lafeyette_

_Denise Hooper_

_Maurice Fennel_

_Alexander Hartman_

_Debbie Miller_

_Tony Hall_

_Frank and Doris Tyler_

_Bertram Valerian_

_Christopher Russell_

Harry recognised some of the surnames, from students who hadn't yet returned to the school, though he did wonder that the Slytherin Nott had returned so quickly. Other names were unfamiliar, Aurors, Porters, passers-by. People who had been meeting friends or passing through, people who'd run to help when the screaming started.

The list of the injured was longer still. Parvati's dad was listed as critical, as were Stephen Cornfoots parents and Rebecca O'Donnells mum, who was an auror.

There were 5 Slopers among the seriously injured, another Hooper, a Fletcher, a Harris and 2 Finch-Fletchleys. Nymphadora Tonks was listed among the less seriously injured, as was Daedalus Diggle and Li Su's parents.

The list of those killed or kissed in the attack on Azkaban was almost as long, and the picture of the shattered prison with the Dark Mark blazing triumphantly above it made him feel sick. Even worse was the news that the Dementors appeared to be breeding and spreading out across the country. Harry shivered even thinking about it.

He could already hear the whispers starting, and feel people looking at him. He glanced over at the Slytherin table expecting to see Malfoy with a sickening smirk on his face but he wasn't there. Neither was Parkinson.

'Come on Harry,' said Hermione, deftly putting together a sausage and bacon sandwich. 'Why don't we head down to Hagrid's now, you can eat that on the way.'

The three of them walked out of the Great Hall but Harry couldn't stop thinking, about the dead, about the war, about the Prophecy. He ended up handing his sandwich to Ron even though Hermione tutted at him.

'You need to eat Harry.'

'I'll get something later.'

He still hadn't told his friends about the Prophecy. He wasn't sure exactly how he was going to go about it. It wasn't exactly something he could just blurt out, or slip into a conversation. 'Hi guys, guess what? I'm the person who's got to kill the Dark Lord, what questions are we doing for Charms again?'

He'd have to find a way though. The papers had already started calling him the 'Chosen One' and making noises about what was on those prophecies the Death Eaters had wanted so badly. He didn't even want to think about how they'd react if the truth came out before he managed to tell them

They met Hagrid in front of his hut, chopping up a big bowl of raw meat.

'Should've known you three'd be the first down. I've got a right treat in store for yeh today.'

'They arrived then?' Hermione ventured. 'Those things you ordered?'

'Yep. Arrived late las' night. They've bin settlin' in nicely.'

A mournful howling sound rose from behind the hut, making the hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand on end.

'Here come some o'the others. Why don't yeh go wait by the pens while I get em ready to come out?'

'What do you suppose it is?' asked Ron as the eerie howls rose again.

'This _is_ Hagrid Ron, it could be just about _anything_.'

Care of Magical Creatures was not a very large class. He, Ron, Hermione and Neville were the only Gryffindors. Crabbe and Goyle were taking it, but they hadn't passed most of their exams and were having to repeat a number of OWL's. Anthony Goldstein and Mandy Brocklehurst were the only Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuffs Hannah Abbott, Sally-Anne Perks and Daniel Moon made up the rest of the class.

'We're only doing it because we want to go into Magizoology,' remarked Anthony Goldstein with his arm around Brocklehurst's shoulders. 'And it's a required NEWT, otherwise we wouldn't have volunteered for another two years of _this_.'

Brocklehurst shuddered and wrinkled her nose. 'Urghh those awful Murtlaps, don't you wish Professor Grubbly-Plank was still reaching?'

'No,' Harry said, firmly. 'Hagrid isn't that bad.'

'Oh really,' said Moon. 'Just a little too fond of things with too many teeth?'

'So what are you taking the ruddy course for?' Ron demanded.

'My family's in the wand core business. I didn't get much of a choice.'

'I just like animals,' Hannah Abbott put in softly. 'And, well, I didn't think I could cope with some of the other classes.'

Sally-Ann Perks smiled ruefully. 'I _know_ I couldn't. Didn't get the grades, but I'm taking as many NEWT's as I can and this is one of them.'

The mournful howling rose again.

'What _is_ that awful noise? He's not making us raise werepuppies or something is he?' Goldstein joked.

Some of the girls laughed but Ron and Hermione turned wide eyes on Harry, who felt a sinking sensation in his stomach.

He could hear again Riddles words from Second Year, words he'd repeated to his best friends after the vision of Hagrid in the diary, 'in trouble every other week, trying to raise werewolf cubs under his bed, sneaking off into the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls.' He almost jumped as Hagrids voice rang out in front of them.

'All righ' then everyone here? Good, then if yeh'll all follow me.'

He led them over to a shady pen in the shadow of the forest, the bowl of meat still in his hands.

'Now if yeh'll all stand by the fence, we don't want ter crowd em.'

Everyone line up as Hagrid walked over to a small gate in the other side of the fence.

'Now don't go makin any sudden movements, yeh don't want ter scare em. Headmaster Dumbledore had to order these specially from the Delaney-Podmore estate an' we're very lucky ter have em, they're not exactly easy ter get hold of.'

He threw open a gate and a blur of pale grey fur shot through, followed by several others and all headed directly for Harry. Sally-Ann Perks screamed as Harry stiffened in shock and disbelief.

'The Grim! We're all going to die!'

'Don't be ridiculous!' roared Hagrid. 'Seein a Grim's no more likely ter kill yeh than hearin an Augury would. They're perfectly harmless.' One of them promptly sank his teeth into Harry's shoe.

'Grims can sense trouble. They know when it's brewin and they're attracted to the pain and sufferin – that's why they appear before a death and that's why the Headmaster wants em in the school. Once they're a bit older they'll be a grand early warnin system.'

He looked down at where the puppies were clustered around Harry's feet.

'Luckily, at this age, they're a bit easier ter distract.' He rattled the bowl of meat and set it down on the ground.

Harry was promptly deserted by all but two, one who was sniffing daisies by his left foot and the one who was still chewing his shoelaces.

'Now, yer all ter pair up and choose a pup. Yeh'll feed it, look after it an keep it with yeh at all times. They've got ter learn the area so they sleep in yer dorms an go ter yer classes and all the rest of it.' He looked proud. 'This is the firs' time anyone's ever tried ter introduce Grims to an area on purpose so it's a bit of an experiment, see.'

'Right, everybody go make friends, and be gentle with em!'

There was a pause before people began to move forward. Sally-Ann was still shrieking slightly whenever a puppy came close, which wasn't really helping as they were attracted to her fear. Hannah was peering over Neville's shoulder at a chubby puppy that was rolling on his back at their feet and the others had moved closer to the bowl of meat to mingle.

Harry couldn't move. He could barely hear through the ringing sound in his ears. They were only puppies but still, he could _see_ his godfathers animagus form in them. Ron and Hermione shot him worried looks and stayed close, patting the silvery grey puppy that was sniffing the grass between him and Ron.

He was brought out of his distraction by Hagrid's large hand clapping him on the shoulder and sending him lurching forward.

'Looks like the little feller's taken quite a shine to yeh Harry,' he said. 'Well, Ron and Hermione have got one and everyone else has paired up so it looks like yer on yer own.'

Ron and Hermione started to protest, but the half-giant happily ignored them. 'Have yeh thought of a name yet?'

Harry's mind flashed back to Grimmauld Place and the tapestry.

'Orion,' he said, voice sounding creaky.

Neville bustled up carrying a chubby puppy a sort of brown/grey colour which reminded him of Lupins hair.

'We're calling him Mandrake,' he said, his cheeks a bit pink as he glanced over his shoulder at his partner Hannah.

He glanced at Hagrid then back to the puppy. '_Is_ it a him?'

Hagrid bent down to check. 'He's a boy alright.'

'This one's a girl,' announced Hermione. 'But honestly Hagrid we didn't pick her out or anything. Ron and I were going to work with Harry!'

Bushy eyebrows rose. 'But then there'd be a spare pup now wouldn't there? It works out better this way. I reckon you three can work together just as well with two pups as yeh could with one, now, have yeh thought of a name.'

Hermione thought a minute. 'Selene?'

Ron shrugged. 'Yeah alright.'

Hagrid beamed and began patting his pockets. 'Now where did I put those collars?'

'Grims are smart see, and curious. They can go practically anywhere too, y'see they're not exactly solid. Yeh need the collars ter keep em from runnin through walls and such and escaping.

Course, yeh only get six months at most before they work out how ter walk through the collars but by then yeh should've bonded.' His eyes grew misty.

His eyes grew misty. 'Why I'd only had Fang a few months when he got himself lost in Hogsmeade. I'd had one too many at the Hogs Head that night so I didn't even notice till I got home and then I was frantic.

I looked everywhere for him. But the clever boy found his own way home by morning.

O'course we might lose a few of them, they might not be suited to life at Hogwarts, might not have the right temperament, see & then they'll just disappear one day.

But yeh've got ter remember they'll be happier out there, with their own kind, and even if they don't come back it doesn't mean they didn't care. They're smart, they'll be okay. It isn't easy lettin em go but sometimes it fer the best, excuse me.'

Hagrid hurried off towards his hut, loudly blowing his nose on a large red handkerchief.

'Um, does anyone know what that was all about?' asked Hannah.

'Oh crap,' Ron winced. 'Charlie.'

'Charlie?'

'Yeah, he's arranged for some mate of his in Romania to owl over some pictures. Hagrids probably been mooning over how little Norbert's all grown up now.'

'Wonderful,' Harry said dryly. 'You do realise the next time we see him he's going to get the baby pictures out again.'

Ron groaned.

'Who's Norbert?'

'Just an old pet of Hagrids,' Hermione said quickly.

They quieted down as Hagrid returned with a small leather satchel.

'Here yeh are then,' he said handing out the collars. 'I've had a word with Professor Flitwick, he's agreed ter teach yeh something ter etch their names onto the collars with – you'll need ter see him when yeh get the chance.'

He pulled out a large notebook and sat down on a nearby boulder. 'This is going ter be like coursework see. Yeh need ter keep a diary about yer Grim – what they've done, where they've been, how they're progressin.

This lesson I want a physical description, a drawin and yer first impressions. Then yer ter get ter know each other a bit better. Homework's two feet of parchment on Grims in general, their needs and behaviour – yeh'd best start with yer Monster Book of Monsters. Yeh've got two weeks ter do it. Any questions?'

'Are we _just_ going to be doing about Grims or will we be learning anything _else_ this term?' drawled Goldstein. Harry thought he sounded rather a lot like Zacharias Smith.

'We'll be doin plenty of other creatures,' Hagrid replied. 'but these're the most important. An' they'll be included in every lesson. Now, what are you and Brocklehurst callin yours?'

The Ravenclaws Grim was a medium grey male they christened Newton, after the famous Magizoologist. Perks and Moon had the smallest puppy, a soft grey female they called Misty, and Crabbe and Goyle had the largest, a male puppy whose coat was so dark it was almost black. They called him Killer.

Harry sat down on the grass and pulled out his notebook. The young Grim looked up at him, startled out of its fascination with his footwear.

'It had to be you didn't it,' Harry sighed. 'Same dark grey, even your eyes are almost the same.' His heart hurt and he wondered just when he'd be able to think of his godfather without feeling the pain of his loss.

The puppy must have sensed it because it proceeded to climb awkwardly over his knees until it was stood nose to nose with him. Green eyes met blue for a long moment and then a pink tongue sloppily licked a long line up his face. Suddenly there was a warm weight on his ankle and a hand on his shoulder.

'You ok mate?' asked Ron as Hermione picked Selene off his feet.

'Yeah,' he said, taking a deep breath. 'Yeah, I'll be alright.'

'OK,' he said, squeezing his shoulder slightly before letting go. 'Oy, Hermione, this isn't right! How about _I_ play with the puppy and _you_ take the notes.'

She turned on him sputtering and Harry had to laugh at their bickering as he began his work.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

By the time the lesson was up Harry had most of the work done, although his first impressions consisted mainly of the fact that Orion obviously had a thing about shoes. As he packed his parchment away Ron peered critically over his shoulder.

'I still say it looks more like a donkey.'

Harry bounced a crumpled up drawing off his best friends freckled face. 'It's not like yours is any better!'

'True,' Ron conceded. 'But it still looks like a donkey. Reckon we could bribe Dean into doing them?'

'Maybe we could just stick photos in or something. I got a camera for my birthday.'

'Did you? I don't remember seeing it.'

'Colin gave me it on the train, you were in your meeting.'

'Cool, Hermione what d'you reckon?'

'_I_ think its bad enough you copy my notes without having someone else actually _do_ your drawings for you. The photos are a good idea though – you could note their ages on them and show how they change as they grow up. It _would_ be a far more accurate way to chart their development than drawings – especially when you two are doing them!'

She smiled. 'I think we should do it. Do you have any film?'

'Yeah, two I think. I might have to pick some more up in Hogsmeade.'

'Well at least you won't have to wait for a Hogsmeade weekend or anything. We could pop down now if you like.'

'No we couldn't.'

'Why not, its not like we've got anything till after lunch.'

'Because Hagrids heading this way and he's got the baby book and a plate of rock cakes.'

'Oh great.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

The afternoon passed quickly. Professor Flitwick had been quite happy to take a few minutes from the lesson to teach them the Engraving Charm and more than up to the task of reviving Lavender Brown, who fainted when she discovered there was a Grim under her chair.

The puppies had certainly lived up to their reputation for curiosity, poking their noses into every nook and cranny of the classroom. At one point they'd been chased around the class by a rather grumpy Monster Book of Monsters they'd unearthed in a corner and a dozen times they'd gotten in the way of someone's spell.

The charms professor had eventually resorted to erecting some sort of Warding that kept them penned at the far end of the classroom out of the way until the end of the lesson.

'All part of the learning process,' he advised as he released them. 'We'll know better next time!'

Harry wasn't particularly looking forward to taking a pair of energetic puppies into McGonagall's classroom and the look she turned on them as they entered made it very clear that the Transfigurations professor was not 100 in favour of the headmasters' latest plan.

Still, she quickly transfigured some boxes into a series of interconnecting tunnels, gave half a dozen sausages some legs and a head start and then pushed the puppies in after them and proceeded to ignore them for the rest of the lesson.

Ordinarily Harry hated review lessons but this time he was pleased to see that his summer reading had paid off. He wasn't nearly as rusty as he usually was after a summer spent completely ignoring the subject. He was never going to be as flawless as Hermione but he felt that he'd managed quite well.

At the end of the hour Ron took control of Selene while Hermione rushed off to her first class in Ritual Magics.

'2 hours free!' Ron exclaimed. 'I'm going to love being a sixth year.'

Harry grinned. 'So you want to head for Zonkos or go play Quidditch or something?'

Ron watched as Lavender packed her bags and detoured across the classroom to avoid coming anywhere near the Young Grims and turned to Harry with a devilish look in his eyes.

'Actually mate, I've got a better idea.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

'You ready?'

'Yeah. You?'

'Definitely. Bet she didn't see this coming.'

They both snickered.

'Hermione is going to kill us, you do know that don't you.'

'Nah, we'll tell her we were just giving them a tour of the castle.' Ron put on his best innocent look. 'Hagrid did say they had to get to know the area.'

Harry laughed. 'She'll never buy that.'

'Probably not.' Ron grinned. 'She'll probably raise her eyebrows at us and shake her head and go 'boys!' again.'

'Or read you a lecture about how you're a prefect now and should be setting a better example for the younger students.'

'Hey, Hermione doesn't like her any more than we do, maybe she'll just laugh.'

'Maybe,' Harry said doubtfully. 'Now shush, I think she's coming.'

Harry quickly stepped out from behind the suit of armour which had been listening in intently and directly into the path of an oncoming Professor Trelawney.

'Harry Potter! My dear boy – the rumours! The stories! The gossip! The Chosen One! Of course, I've always known, since before we even met in the flesh…the omens were never very good after all, and the Inner Eye never lies. But why have you not returned to Divinations?'

Her lips pursed. 'I could understand if you were still taking classes with the nag, I mean the centaur, but since the Headmasters return _I_ have resumed responsibility for the NEWT classes. Frankly I find it an insult that the horse is still teaching the OWL year, between the two of us I don't think much of his abilities as a Seer.'

She looked at him mournfully. 'Its such a shame when a student is scared away from a subject by a poor teacher don't you think?'

Harry stifled a laugh and nodded solemnly.

'You were never much of a seer my dear, but you made a wonderful Object. And you never shied away from the horrors the future could hold.'

'Well its like you said Professor, all the signs were there. And you can't really ignore your own future can you. Do you remember our first lesson?'

'Aaah, how could I forget. Such terrible Omens in your teacup.' She shuddered slightly.

'Yeah, a terrible omen. The Grim.'

Suddenly 2 streaks of fur appeared in the middle of the corridor ahead and hurtled excitedly towards Harry. Orion in particular seemed quite keen to simply go _through_ the divinations professor as the fastest possible route.

Trelawney screamed, eyes bulging behind her enormous spectacles as a pair of yapping Grims leapt at her knees and got tangled in her long gauze scarves. She staggered backwards into Harry, jumped and, apparently not wanting to take the chance that there was something worse behind her, started running down the corridor screaming.

Naturally enough the pups ran after her.

She hadn't got very far when the eavesdropping suit of armour just happened to stick an armoured foot out into the corridor and the professor went flying.

The pups _leapt_, landing on her chest and she stared in horror at the two Grims on top of her and seemed to deflate, collapsing into a sherry-scented heap.

A laughing Ron threw off the Invisibility Cloak which had hidden both him and the pups and handed it back to Harry with a wide grin.

'That was priceless! Did you see her face? Classic! Wish we had a picture of that!' He turned to the helpful Suit of Armour and asked 'Do you happen to know Fred and George?'

The Suit snickered.

'Yeah it was pretty funny, just wish we could do something similar to Snape.'

'Don't worry about him mate, the twins still haven't forgiven him for the whole birthday thing and I wouldn't want to be in his shoes when they get their revenge.'

They both grinned, then bent down to untangle the pups from the strands of crystal beads and scarves they were entangled in.

'We'd best wake her up, here, you hold him for a minute. _Enervate_!'

Trelawney took one look at Ron with a Grim under each arm and promptly started gibbering.

'Professor?'

Her eyes started to roll back.

'Um, these are our Care of Magical Creatures projects – we're doing all about Grims.'

'Yeah,' Ron said enthusiastically. 'And we thought you'd want to see. Look!' He shoved a puppy under her nose and she fainted again.

'Ah well, at least we tried. Want to go play Quidditch?'

'We can't just leave her here Ron.'

'Why not? Bet her class would thank us.'

'Probably. But I bet we'd be in a lot more trouble for it.'

'Alright, fine. I'll take these two and run down to the broom shed, you wake her up and meet me at the Pitch.'

Harry looked down at the professor and sighed. 'Don't suppose you want to swap?'

'Nope,' Ron said cheerfully. 'It was my idea so I get to choose.' He socked Harry lightly on the arm. 'Have fun!'

'Some best mate you are!' Harry called after him as he ran down the corridor towards the stairs.

Harry revived her again and watched her eyes dart around as wildly as Moody's eye when the Twins were nearby. Seeing no sign of the Grims they eventually settled on Harry and she suddenly clasped him around the knees.

It was Harry's turn to glance wildly around the corridor – this was _not_ a position he wanted to be caught in.

'My dear boy! It was a Sign! An Omen of most terrible misfortune! I saw them – _two_ Grims! And they were _here_, in Hogwarts! Such a premonition of Disaster!'

'Er, about that Professor, you see me and Ron…'

Her grip tightened. 'Yes, yes I saw your friend. The Grims were clustered around him as though they were familiar to him. He is in terrible danger, he and all those closest to him! He has a large family does he not? Oh the poor soul.'

Harry tried again. 'Well, we're taking Care of Magical Creatures together…'

'Together, oh yes, they were after you as well weren't they.' Her eyes grew even rounder behind her glasses. Harry had the sudden impression that she wasn't so much looking _at_ him as looking _through_ him.

'Oh my poor boy. Fate, it seems, is coming for you and it won't be stopped. The Grims, the Grims were running after _you_!'

'Well, you see, Hagrid brought them in as a class project. They're supposed to protect the school. It was the Headmasters idea…'

It was quite clear that Harry's explanation wasn't exactly sinking in.

'The Headmaster. Protect the school. Of course, they appeared _here_! In Hogwarts itself! A terrible tragedy is to befall the school! The shadow of our doom is upon us and you and your friends are at the centre of it all. You must beware!'

She scrambled awkwardly to her feet, hair and scarves and beads going every which way so she looked even more manic than usual.

'And I, the great-great-granddaughter of Cassandra Trelawney, I was there. And I could do nothing!'

She wailed suddenly. 'Like the great Cassandra of old, doomed to see the future but unable to prevent it!'

'Professor it wasn't a vision! They were real!'

She patted him absently on the shoulder. 'The future is always real.'

'It wasn't the future, they were really here, just now.'

'A good point. We don't know when our doom will befall us. I must warn the Headmaster immediately!'

She strode off in the direction of Dumbledore's office muttering to herself and Harry had a sudden image of being dragged in front of the headmaster to explain exactly how he'd broken Trelawney's rather tenuous grip on reality. Then again, there was always the chance that he'd put it down to the sherry speaking.

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Playing Quidditch and looking after a pair of Grims at the same time was…interesting. They had to stay low enough to the ground to keep an eye on them so Harry reluctantly decided against getting the Snitch out. Instead he agreed to chuck a Quaffle at Ron so he could practice his Keeping skills.

'Don't want to get chucked off the team for being rubbish,' he laughed, but to Harry's mind it seemed forced.

'You won us the cup last year mate. They can't chuck you off after that can they.'

Ron brightened as he fended off another Quaffle. 'Yeah, yeah there is that. But what about the others? D'you think Kirke and Sloper'll still be on the team?'

'Dunno, depends if we find anyone better.'

'Think Katie'll make them try out again?'

'Maybe.'

They happily discussed the state of the house team and when practice was likely to be as they practiced.

'Reckon this'll tire them out?' Harry asked, watching Orion attacking the shadow of the brooms on the grass.

'Hope so. It's going to be hard enough concentrating on a new class without them two playing up.

Far too soon for Harry's liking, who was dying to get up in the air and do some serious flying, it was time to pack up and head for the next class.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

They met up with Hermione near the Hospital Wing and listened with half an ear as she chatted excitedly about the wonders of Arithmantic Equations, Rune Stones and Phases of the Moon, all of which she was to research for an essay on the basic tools of Ritual Magics. Ron rolled his eyes at her enthusiasm.

'You know Hermione, you're the only person I know who'd be _this_ pleased to have _that much_ homework.'

She ignored him as they joined the crowd in front of the Medimagic classroom. It was the same as it had been for Wandless Magics, it looked like everyone was taking it and they all crowded into the room, chatting excitedly and with plenty of time to spare before the lesson started.

Again they ended up sitting near the front, which pleased Hermione.

'It's good to see people being enthusiastic about a class,' she smiled as she sat down. 'I'm quite excited – have you read the book? It's such a fascinating subject, and so useful too. I can't wait to get started, can you?'

Harry smiled. He was looking forward to it. Medimagic sounded pretty cool and it would certainly be useful. He spent far too much time in Madam Pomphrey's clutches.

The teacher arrived bang on time, a dark haired young man who looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties. Harry recognised him as the man who had sat beside Owen Dumbledore when they ate at the High Table.

He smiled at the class. 'I'm glad to see you're all on time and ready to begin. I intend to take advantage of that while I can since how long this conscientiousness will last is anyone's guess.'

The class laughed, though Hermione looked slightly scandalised.

'I am Professor Christian Pomphrey, though to avoid any confusion with my grandmother you can call me Professor Christian. Medimagic is not a terribly glamorous course, but it is an incredibly useful one.

What you learn here will not be the sort of sophisticated treatments for major maladies that you might find at St Mungos. This course is _Basic_ Medimagic, and what you learn here will only be the very basics of the Mediwizards craft. Personally I believe that every young witch and wizard should take this course, particularly in the light of recent events.

His face grew suddenly very serious. 'Even if none of you have any desire to go on to become a Mediwizard or Healer this course is still very important. I expect all of you to pay attention in my class because what I will be teaching you may help save someone's life one day, or even your own in an emergency.

The class was quiet and the professor paused for as moment, running a hand through his hair and taking a deep breath before he smiled again.

'Hopefully it won't come to that and if that is the case then you will at least have learnt something that will come in useful in later life, no mater what you choose to be. You will leave here knowing how to treat simple illnesses and injuries, and even a little about reversing magical accidents.

Now, we're going to start with the most important thing and work our way down from there so let's start with what to do in an emergency.

Now, in an emergency there are 4 main levels of priority. 1, to preserve life. 2, to limit the effects of a condition. 3, to promote recovery and 4, to cure the condition.

Always treat those closest to death first, obviously these will be the most difficult but you do what you can to treat the condition that's threatening their life in order to keep them alive long enough for help to arrive.

Secondly you move on to dangerous or serious injuries which may not be immediately life threatening but might become so if they get left too long. The worse the injury the more important it is to treat it as soon as possible. You try and prevent their condition from deteriorating before help arrives.

Thirdly you move on to the less serious injuries, ones that aren't as serious but that you still can't actually heal yourself. You do what you can to promote recovery such as cleaning the wounds or giving a pain relieving potion or a muscle relaxant.

Finally you come to the simpler injuries, ones' you _can_ heal. It can be tempting to head for these first but in any situation this is the order you treat the casualties.

For example during the recent events in London you might first levitate blocks of rubble that were crushing people to death and lift them away. You might then move on to someone who was bleeding heavily and cast the Coagulation Charm, as you would not want them to continue bleeding and bleed to death.

Then you might treat someone with a badly broken leg. The leg will not kill them even if it is left alone but if you immobilize the leg and ward it so it isn't knocked around further and relieve the pain then they'll have an easier time of it until someone's available to heal them properly.

Finally you might treat a broken nose which is the least serious of the injuries and can be mended with a simple charm which I will be teaching you later.

Is everybody clear on this so far?'

There was a murmur of assent.

'Good. I hope everyone is taking notes, you will be tested on this later.'

The professor continued, explaining the importance of summoning help ('a bit of basic medimagic doesn't make you a healer. You won't be a Mediwizard even at the end of the course so if it's an emergency you should always summon help.'), and assessing the situation ('in any emergency you'll have to think fast but you _must_ think, not just rush in. You need to decide who needs your help _most_, how to keep them safe _while_ you help and exactly _what_ help they actually need').

They discussed examples and made lists. By the end of the lesson not a single spell had been learnt but everyone's heads were buzzing from the amount of information they had been given. Seamus was rubbing a wrist sore from taking so many notes and he wasn't the only one. Of course Hermione was in her element.

'Now I know it's a lot to take in so no homework this lesson just read and review your notes and make sure you understand what we've covered today. If you have any questions we'll go over them first thing next time. All right? Good. Well I'll see you all then.'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

The class burst into excited chatter the instant they left the room.

'Wow,' said Ron, impressed. 'That was some lesson wasn't it?'

Hermione was already checking her timetable. 'We have him for two hours on Monday,' she announced. 'So we've all weekend to review. That was a really good lesson – I can't wait until we start learning the actual spells.'

The rest of the class were talking about much the same thing, though some were discussing how cool it was that Professor Christian was Madam Pomphrey's grandson. Harry distinctly heard Lavender giggling about how cute he was and how she'd absolutely _have_ to owl Parvati about it.

'Bit freaky though,' Ron continued. 'I mean, first another Dumbledore and now another Pomphrey. What's next, another Snape?'

He turned green 'Urgh, Snape breeding, that means Snape having _sex_.' He shuddered. 'Urgh bad mental images, _really_ bad mental images. Hermione, you're smart, you can obliviate me can't you? _Please_, obliviate me!'

'Thanks for that Ron,' Harry said, feeling a bit green himself. That was not something he ever wanted to think about. Ever. And especially not when people were going to be rummaging round in his head trying to teach him Occlumency. Though if the Dark Lord tried crawling around in there it might give him a bit of a shock.

Hermione decided to change the subject. 'I'm surprised how well the pups behaved, what on earth did you do to them?'

'Tired them out I guess,' Harry replied.

'Oh?'

'Yeah, they spent over an hour chasing about the Quidditch Pitch.'

'I hope you were keeping a proper eye on them.'

'Relax Hermione, we stayed close to the ground the whole time.'

She must have heard the slightly glum note to his voice because she patted him on the arm and volunteered to watch them both while they had a _proper_ fly sometime.

'Cheers Hermione,' he said, giving her a grateful grin.

'And we gave them a bit of a walk,' put in Ron, snickering.

'A walk?' she said, sounding slightly suspicious.

'Yeah, just, you know, around the castle.'

'Oh _really?_'

Yes, _really_. Hagrid did say they were supposed to get familiar with the area.'

Hermione relaxed. 'Yes, he did. So you took them for a walk?'

'Yeah, we went round some of the bits we don't visit that often.'

'That's a really good idea. We should put it in the log and take them round a new part of the castle every day.'

'And we ran into Trelawney.'

By the look of shocked comprehension on her face Harry could tell Hermione had guessed _exactly_ what had happened.

'Ron Weasley you _didn't_!'

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_Many thanks to everyone who mentioned how good it was to see CAPSLOCK!Harry again, glad you enjoyed it. He will return. To those who are wondering where the plot mentioned in the summary went let me assure you – it is on its way._

_In fact chapter after next is where things start hotting up. Next chapter is Friday where we see the DADA lesson & the return of TV!Snape and finishes off my in-depth look at the first week and all the new lessons. Chapter after next involves the DA and quite a bit more from Zabini. I believe Nevilles going to be showing off a little bit too. _

_It's something I'm quite looking forward to writing & posting and that chapter is where the plot really gets going. So I hope you'll all stick around to read it._

_**I-like-Llamas** – Loved your review, it gave me a giggle. And it is woman, so right first time!_

_**Felis** – Will may well show up at some point, but I'm not quite sure when. _

_**Jerrac** – Oops. It's the history I tell you! Everything in history is in ' not " so I've completely gotten out of the habit of ever using them. But as I've used them this far I'll probably just leave as is._


	17. TGIF?

_Here it is, a new chapter! This one goes out to **Jamie46**, **Zarz**, and **Unclear Destiny** – don't you just love reviewers. :)_

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**T.G.I.F?**

It was with a feeling of dread deep in his stomach that Harry made his way to the first Defence against the Dark Arts lesson of the year at 9 O'clock on Friday morning. By the way the other Gryffindors were dragging their feet he felt sure he wasn't the only one. Poor Neville was practically shaking in his shoes.

The pups had been left behind with Ginny and her friends since Harry was pretty sure that Snape wouldn't hesitate to take points from them despite the Headmasters instructions that they were supposed to go everywhere with them. Mandrake was with Hannah in the Hufflepuff dorms.

They hesitated outside the classroom door where the Slytherins were waiting with sickeningly superior looks on their faces. It was pretty obvious that DADA was going to be the new Potions. Harry was just glad he couldn't see Malfoy, though he did notice Zabini glancing over at him curiously.

The door slammed open suddenly and Professor Snape stepped into the corridor.

'Inside,' he snapped.

The classroom was gloomier than Harry ever remembered seeing it, including those times when Snape had substituted for Lupin in Third Year. The heavy wooden shutters were closed and the candles cast eerie flickering shadows over the walls, which had been decorated with gruesome pictures of what looked like people in a great deal of pain.

Snape took his place in the deep shadows at the front of the class. Harry squinted but in the gloom the professor seemed like little more than a looming shadow and a menacing voice. Even so he could feel Snape's eyes boring into him as he began to speak.

'Considering the teaching you have received over the past 5 years, very little of which _truly _concerned the Dark Arts I am surprised that so many of you managed to scrape an OWL in this subject. Be warned, the NEWT work will be far more advanced and I will be very surprised if all of you make it through the year.'

Snape set off around the edge of the room, speaking in an even lower voice.

'The Dark Arts are many, varied, ever-changing and eternal. They are spells of great power and intricacy, spells of a level far beyond your own. Let us illuminate the inadequacy of your previous grounding in the subject.' He smirked.

'In your third year you might as well have been taking Defence against Dark _Creatures_, not surprising given your teacher.'

Harry felt his hackles rise.

'Do you really expect the Dark Lord to employ Red Caps and Hinkypunks against you when he can command Dementors and Inferi?'

A sudden flare of candlelight made everyone in the class jump and illuminated two pictures. One clearly showed a mans soul screaming as it was sucked from his body by the Dementors Kiss, leaving him staring blank eyed and hollow. The other was a wash of red and it took Harry a moment to identify the fact that there were bits of body strewn around in it.

The candlelight died down and Snape continued.

'Your Fourth Year, covering Dark Curses, at least managed to teach you _something _useful. Which is more than can be said for your First, Second or Fifth. The Unforgiveables are something you can certainly expect to be facing though the methods of defence you were taught are only of the most basic level.'

Candlelight flared again to reveal a trio of pictures at the back of the class showing people suffering under the effects of the unforgiveables. Snape waved a hand and candles flared all along the walls, flames jumping and dancing maniacally on pictures which left very little to the imagination.

'The Dark Lord has far more at his command than a handful of curses. From the most insidious of magics to the foulest of creatures, from the most potent of poisons to the darkest of spells they are all his to command. Your defences must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the Arts you seek to stand against.

These pictures,' he gestured towards them as he swept past, 'give a fair impression of what happens when they aren't.'

The class was silent as he swept back towards his desk.

'You are, I believe, complete novices in the use of non-verbal spells. Can anyone tell me what is the advantage of the non-verbal spell?'

Hermiones hand shot into the air. Snape took a moment to look around at everybody else, making sure he had no choice before saying curtly 'Very well – Miss Granger?'

'Your adversary has no warning about which spell you are about to perform giving you a split second advantage.'

'Yet another answer word for word from the textbook,' Snape said dismissively. 'But essentially correct. Those who progress to using magic without shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spellcasting though not all wizards are capable of this. It is a question of concentration and mind-power that some,' his gaze lingered on Harry once more, 'lack.'

'You git!' Harry thought furiously. 'You know full well that wasn't the problem with Occlumency – you were! And it wasn't like your concentration was that good when I broke into _your_ memories was it Snape.'

He was still fuming as the professor divided them into pairs and instructed them to practice cursing and shielding in silence. Snape swooped around the classroom like an overgrown bat, sneering at their attempts and completely ignoring the fact that Hermione had already managed to deflect Nevilles jinx twice without saying a word.

Harry's mind couldn't help wandering since it didn't seem likely that Ron was going to succeed any time soon.

'_You are, I believe, a complete novice in the use of a microwave oven. Can you tell me what the advantage of a microwave oven is? **No?** Pathetic Snape. How can someone who has had absolutely no experience whatsoever of muggle kitchen gadgetry be so incomparably ignorant of its uses? **Demonstrate** it? Now why would I choose to do something like that? Of **course **it would make things easier for you – why do you think I haven't done it? **smirk **_

Snapes voice broke into his musings as he suddenly appeared beside Ron.

'Pathertic Weasley. Here, let me show you –'

He turned his wand on Harry so fast that he reacted instinctively. All thoughts of non-verbal spells forgotten he yelled the Shield Charm he had spent so long practicing with the DA last year.

Snape was knocked off his feet in a burst of violet light and the class was silent as the professor picked himself up, scowling. He stalked back to loom over Harry.

'Do you remember me telling you we were practicing _non-verbal_ spells Potter?' he asked silkily.

'Yes.'

'Yes, _Sir_.'

Harry refused to drop his gaze, glowering into Snapes eyes as they bored into him maliciously. Suddenly, images began rising in his mind.

'_**BOOM!** No Snape, it **isn't** supposed to do that. And in the hands of anyone who is not an ignorant cretin it refrains from doing so. Water and electricity **do not mix** Professor Snape, and never have. You didn't know? That's **hardly** an excuse coming from someone who expects 11 year olds to know the magical properties of herbs they've never heard of. _

_10 points from Slytherin for double standards and 10 more for destroying the computer. Now clear that mess up.'_

'_You had all the necessary ingredients Professor Snape, washing powder, fabric softener, everything. There are even instructions printed on the reverse of the box! The washing was **not** supposed to turn bright pink, nor to suddenly shrink 3 sizes. Ahhh, and here is the mistake. You do not mix your reds and your whites professor. I don't care if **wizard** washing is nothing like this – this is **muggle** washing, at which you are evidently an utter failure._

_Of course it is **possible** that you could learn and improve but why should I make the effort to change my opinion of your abilities when you made such an enormous mess for me to base it on? I don't happen to like you Snape so I see no reason to treat you fairly.'_

'_My, my, my, we've **finally** managed to switch the tv on. Isn't **that** an achievement. Don't pout Snape, what did you expect? Praise for something muggle children unable to even walk can manage? Yes, I did tell Lupin well done. Yes Lupin **is** a half-blood and already knew what a tv was. Your point? I happen to like Lupin, **sneer** something I very much doubt I will ever say about you. _

_Speaking of which you didn't turn it on quite the way I wanted you to. 5 points from Slytherin for sheer stupidity and 5 inches of parchment on the best methods for tuning on audio-visual equiptment. By tomorrow or you'll have a detention to work on it.'_

Harry watched as Snape's usually sallow face turned a mottled red and purple. His long fingers began to flex as if they were imagining finding themselves wrapped around Harry's throat.

'AND THATS WHAT YOU GET FOR SNEAKING INTO OTHER PEOPLES MINDS!' Harry yelled mentally.

A vein started to throb in the professors forehead.

'Detention, Potter,' he whispered harshly. 'Saturday night. 9 o'clock. My office. And 10 points from Gryffindor for failure to obey instructions.'

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'What on earth was all that about?' asked Hermione as they made their way to Enchantment.

'That bloody git was looking inside my mind again!'

'He used Legilimency on you? In _class_?'

'Yeah, but he didn't much like what he saw,' Harry snickered.

'What did he see?' asked Ron.

'Harry, you have to start practicing your Occlumency. If Professor Snape was able to get in…'

'I know Hermione. And I will. Once Remus starts teaching me I'm sure I'll get better, even if it's only to prove what a bloody rubbish teacher _he _was!'

'We're never going to learn anything this year if he's just going to pick on us like he did in Potions. You have to get the DA up and running again soon.'

'Tomorrow Ron, I promise.'

'You've got detention tomorrow night remember?'

'I don't care! We'll sort something out. If not tomorrow then definitely Sunday alright?'

'Yeah, okay. So, what did he see?'

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

In Enchantment, in the hour before lunch, there was a test, which Hermione flew through but Ron and Harry found intensely gruelling. Professor Lyon, who had spent much of the lesson fiddling with the grandfather clock again then assigned a further 5 chapters to be read for Wednesday's lesson.

Harry privately decided to work a bit harder on this second set of chapters, just in case he decided to spring another test on them.

They finally had the chance to pick up their Grims at lunch and took them down to play on the shores of the Lake for an hour before Harry had to run and meet Neville for Herbology. He reminded himself that he would need to re-stock on camera film next time they were in Hogsmeade since they'd just used up all he had.

He wondered if Ron would succeed in talking Hermione into heading into town to get them developed or whether she would actually manage to force Ron to make a start on his homework before she left for Arithmancy.

In Herbology they headed straight for Greenhouse 6, where many of the magical herbs destined for the Hospital Wing were grown.

'Now pay attention everyone and someone get that animal away from my Strangler Vines!'

Harry grabbed Orion by the collar and dragged the curious pup back.

'Welcome to Greenhouse 6 and NEWT level Herbology! In here are some of the many magical herbs and funghi which we will be growing for Madame Pomphrey. This year it has been decided that the course will concentrate on growing a larger amount of healing herbs than usual, just in case.'

She rubbed her dirt-stained hands together briskly. 'Right, gloves on and trowels out. We'll start by planting Arnica and Spider Moss.'

2 hours later and they had finally caught the last of the Spider Moss, which liked to scurry off and hide in dark corners but was an excellent coagulant, and planted it in the damp and rocky troughs they had prepared.

'All right, that's enough for today. I'll see you all on Monday, class dismissed.'

Ron was waiting outside the greenhouses for him, minus Selene.

'I think Hermione decided it was safer to take her to Arithmancy than leave her with me,' he said cheerfully.

'Wonder what gave her that idea,' Harry said with a grin. Ron laughed.

'Katies just put up a notice for the Quidditch tryouts. It's a week tomorrow – she says we all have to try out again. Told her I'd pass the message on.'

'Cheers. You want to go to Hogsmeade? I'll buy you a Butterbeer.'

'Why not. Did I tell you what Hermione had me doing while you were gone…'

They were waylaid by Dennis Creevey before they even left the gates.

'Hiya Harry!'

'Hi Dennis.'

He chattered excitedly for a moment about Colin's plans for a photo shoot, which had Ron laughing and Harry's eyes widening.

'Don't worry Harry! It'll be fun, you'll see!' He then pressed a scroll into his hands and ran back towards the castle.

'What's that all about?' asked Ron. 'Another message from Dumbledore? Or is it instructions for your hair and make-up for the shoot?' He sniggered.

'Shut up Ron.'

Harry opened the scroll and was surprised to note that the headmaster hadn't sent it.

'It's from Remus,' he said. 'Wants me to meet him in the Astronomy Tower in 10 minutes. I'll have to run.' He paused for a moment. 'Will you take care of Orion for me – it's just, I mean,' he stopped, unsure how to put into words the fact that it just felt wrong to spring the young Grim on someone else who was still mourning Sirius.

Luckily he didn't have to. 'Course I'll take him. And you still owe me that Butterbeer. Don't think I'll forget.'

'Cheers mate.'

Harry sprinted back along the path to the castle and cut across the lawns to one of the smaller side doors near the Astronomy Tower. He was out of breath by the time he reached the door at the entrance to the Astronomy classrooms and stepped inside.

Lupin was stood staring at the revolving model of the moon phases as he crossed the floor but turned with a smile as he heard Harry approach.

'Hello Harry,' he greeted warmly. 'I wasn't sure if I'd left you enough time in my note. The headmaster told me you had a few hours free.' He gestured towards a wooden bench with red cushions and laughed. 'Best sit yourself down and catch your breath. I'll make us some tea.'

He whipped out his wand and within moments they were sat across from each other enjoying tea and biscuits.

'So, Harry, can you tell me, _without_ getting all worked up about it, exactly what Severus _did _teach you about Occlumency?'

'Not a lot,' Harry said shortly, then sighed at the disappointed look in the werewolf's eyes. None of it was Lupins fault, it wasn't really fair to be taking it out on him.

'Sorry. It's just, it's like I said in Dumbledore's office – I'd go, he'd tell me to defend myself and then he'd break into my mind, again and again. And then he'd call me pathetic and tell me Voldemort's a very powerful Legilimens and I'd never be able to stop _him_ getting inside my head. That's really about it. That's all he taught me.'

Lupin sighed. 'Not _exactly_ the way I would have gone about it,' he allowed. 'No matter. I always found you to be a very able pupil Harry and if I could teach you the Patronus Charm at 13 I don't doubt I'll be able to teach you Occlumency now. Let's start with what you do know.'

Harry explained what he'd tried to do over the summer, clearing his mind with the help of the muggle books, and that he'd read Magics of the Mind (and had Hermione explain some of it) and he'd also read the section in his Wandless Magic book that talked about fogging the mind.

'But I still don't know how to actually do it.'

'Well let's see if I can make things a little clearer for you. A Legilimens can attack, essentially, one of two ways. They can sneak inside your mind gently and then ease your thought to a particular path or they can break in and force your thoughts from you.'

Harry nodded, he'd experienced both of those.

'Fogging the mind is the quickest trick to foiling a Legilimens. When you feel someone inside your head, or suspect someone is about to try and get inside, you immediately imagine a thick white fog, lying over your mind. In this way the Legilimens is unable to see the thoughts through the fog.

Unfortunately, any Legilimens is going to know, the minute they see that fog, that you know they are there. If they're powerful enough they will simply force their way through the fog.

A better way is to concentrate exceptionally hard on something else, something they would expect to be inside your head. Quidditch, food, school, girls, anything. These thoughts then form a similar barrier to the fog but they are much less conspicuous and most people find them easier to concentrate on.

A good Legilimens would then try to lead your thoughts onto something similar and then to where they wanted. Say you were thinking about food. They might direct your thoughts towards a meal in the Great Hall. It's still a food memory so you don't suspect. In the memory you look up at the High Table, again perfectly natural. You are then led into thinking about the last time you ate with the teachers in a different setting, which would be your birthday say.

And suddenly the Legilimens can see who was there and what was discussed. They might influence you to think more closely about certain things that were said or other discussions on the same subject.

They might have you wonder about a particular person, where they are now, what they've been told to do. Because it's a logical train of thought you might not realise you've been led astray, you might just think your mind has wandered.

That's why, with this method, you need to concentrate so hard.'

'I read about building walls…'

'Ah yes, another one of the simpler methods is to build a wall, or barrier to keep the Legilimens from reaching your thoughts in the first place. It works the same way as the fog, you imagine a thick wall between your thoughts and anyone trying to get to them. Some people build them of stone, others glass, and at least one of rubber.'

'Glass? But, wouldn't that be pretty easy to break?'

'Real glass, yes. But this was just the thought of glass. I think that particular Occlumens believed that a Legilimens would just slide off, like water on a windowpane. With practice these walls can be held up long term or erected at a moments notice.

If someone is trying to sneak into your mind then this method would prevent them, since destroying the barrier would alert you to their presence. But if someone were trying to force their way in…'

'Then they'd be able to break it down.'

'If they were strong enough, yes. And Severus was correct in saying that the Dark Lord is an exceptionally strong Legilimens. But these methods _would_ foil a weaker one.'

'Alright so how do I stop _Voldemort_ from reading my mind?'

'By making sure he can't find it.'

Harry looked at him blankly.

'Did your book ever mention something called a Liars Palace?'

Harry nodded slowly. 'Yeah, it said, during the war with Grindelwald a number of Aurors, trained in the use of a Liars Palace, were able to infiltrate the enemy. It sounded like they hid who they were under someone else?'

'Exactly. That is the highest skill of any Occlumens, being able to hide your own thoughts and feelings so deep inside layers of other thoughts and feelings that even the most accomplished Legilimens would only be able to see what you _wanted_ them to see.

Those Aurors during the war submerged who they really were under feelings of deep seated hatred towards the Ministry, memories of practicing the Dark Arts and thought of punishing the Muggles. But it had to be very, very thorough. A lifetime's thoughts, feelings and memories, all seamlessly woven, and your true self locked away where it couldn't be found.

More than one of them went mad – lost their true selves, thought they really were who they were pretending to be, though the Healers managed to bring most of them back. And they had to be trained individually, because even the slightest mistake in building their Liars Palace and they could be found out. And if they were then the Ministry couldn't allow them to bring others down with them.

But done correctly and they were able to gain Grindelwald's trust, rise through the ranks, spread false information and spy on the Dark sides plans without them even realising that there was a traitor amongst them.

'Wow,' said Harry, impressed. 'Is that what we're going to be doing?'

'Not quite,' Lupin laughed. 'It would take years before you'd be ready for _that_! No, we'll be doing a slightly scaled back version known as a Safe Space.'

Harry blinked. Maybe the Muggle books weren't as far off as he'd thought.

'Now, the Safe Space has to be somewhere you know very well, a place you have a deep connection too, as well as one that feels safe. You would then hide your thoughts in various places within the safe space so that while someone may be able to get in they won't be able to find what they are looking for. You're looking a bit confused Harry, am I going too fast for you?'

Harry looked up. 'I sort of get it, but I wish Hermione was here!'

Lupin laughed. 'Alright, I'll give you an example, try and simplify it a bit. If I was asking Hermione to build a safe space –'

'She'd probably know exactly what you were talking about.'

'And quote a half dozen books on the subject,' the teacher agreed, and they shared a grin. 'No, what I was about to say was if Hermione had to choose a place she feels safe and that she knows intimately, then she might choose the Library. If it was, then she would be able to file her thoughts like books.'

'But wouldn't that be a bit obvious? If someone went looking?'

'No, because it is a place that Hermione knows far more about than you or I, and because her filing system would be unique to her. If your head was the library where would information on the Order go?'

'The Restricted Section,' Harry said promptly.

'But you've been able to sneak into the Restricted Section haven't you?'

'How did you know about that?'

'Harry, I spent seven years here in the company of your father and Sirius, did you really think we ignored all the fascinating possibilities of books they were keeping locked up?'

'I didn't really get very far,' Harry confessed. 'A book screamed at me.'

'You're lucky. One swallowed Sirius.'

'_Swallowed_ Sirius?'

'Yes, it took us nearly a week to figure out how to make it cough him back up again and by that time Madam Pince had found him. I think he had detention with her for a month but we're getting off track here. The point is that most people, looking for sensitive information like that would automatically _assume_ it would be in the Restricted Section.'

'Well where else would it be?'

'What about the drawers on Madam Pinces desk? Or the filing cabinet in her office?'

Harry hadn't even known there _was_ a filing cabinet in her office.

'And of course the Library has its own protections. Anyone sneaking inside this Mind Library could be confronted by Mrs Norris, Filch, Madame Pince, all layers of defense between the Legilimens and the information.

It takes a great deal of work to _build_ a Safe Space but once it's up it's a lot more automatic than the other defences because your mind expects the protections to be there. Who imagines the library without Madame Pince? You expect her to be there and so you don't have to concentrate on her protecting your thoughts in the same way you would a wall. Does that make sense?'

'Yeah, that makes a _lot_ more sense.'

'Alright, let's see now, if you were Ron where would your Safe Space be? Remember, it must be somewhere he would feel a deep connection to, a place he would know intimately.'

'The Burrow?'

'Very likely. So where would you hide information on the Order now?'

Harry thought for a moment. 'The Twins room.'

'And why is that?'

'Well, its probably the safest place in the house – I mean, you can't move in there without setting off an explosion or something.'

'So their room would have the most natural protections?'

'Yeah. Yeah it would.'

'Any other reasons?'

'Well they are _in _the Order.'

'So it makes a logical sense to you for the information to be there?'

'Yeah.'

'Very good Harry. Your thoughts must be put away but it must be somewhere that makes sense to you otherwise they won't stay there.

If you tried, say, hiding them under the cat, then they would be harder to keep there because you would have to keep reminding yourself that that's where you put them. They would seem out of place and a trained Legilimens would spot that fact.

Now, what automatic protections would the Burrow have?'

'Mrs Weasley!'

Lupin chuckled. 'And a very formidable protection she would be. Anything else?'

'Well I know there are wards…'

'_Very_ good. And because you know that the wards are designed to keep things away from the Burrow they would act as barriers to get through before even reaching the Burrow.'

'Like the fog again?'

'Exactly. Now the thing is, because a Safe Space is built on our own personal thoughts and associations they are very individual. For example, you chose the Twins room to hide sensitive information. Ron himself might imagine the Burrow when Bill and Charlie were still living there and instead hide it in Bills room, because he remembers when he used to practice his cursebreaking on the furniture in there.'

'Did he really?'

'According to Molly he used to curse things just so he could practice breaking the curses on them. She made him limit his activities to the bedroom after she was attacked by a rather vicious rug.'

'And Bill's an Order member too.'

'So again it would make sense. Or there might be other reasons behind choosing the hiding place. It might be a particular corner of the shed because that's where Arthur hides all his muggle machinery so Molly doesn't find it. It could even be an old hiding place of Ron's, say an old tree stump in the garden, because even the Twins never found what he hid in there.

Those places might make sense because of the need to hide what he knows about the Order from his mother, or because it's his biggest secret and they always used to go in the stump. And those are just a few of the possibilities. So you see, even if the Legilimens knows you, even if they're actually familiar with the Safe Space it's still very difficult for them to find what they're looking for.

Let's try it one more time. Still Ron, where would you hide your feelings on the Ministry?'

'Percy's room.'

'So supposing a Legilimens had managed to get past the wards, and Mrs Weasley, and has figured out that as you dislike both the Ministry and Percy, who works there, that Percy's room is where the information is likely to be. Suppose that they are even familiar with the Burrow and head straight for Percy's room. What then?'

'What do you mean?'

'They've reached Percy's room but where exactly do they look then? There's a room full of items, each with their own significance or no significance at all. The information isn't just lying around in the open. Is it in his trunk?'

'No.'

'Why not?'

'Well, his trunk would just make me think about Hogwarts.'

'What about in the wardrobe?'

'Just makes me think of his stupid suits.'

'Under the bed?'

'I can't think of anything linked to under Percy's bed. I don't think I'd want to either.'

'So where is it? Where would you, personally, hide the information?'

Harry thought for a long moment before it came to him.

'There's a little pot, on the drawers beside his bed. He used to keep his Prefects Badge in there. That's where I'd hide it.'

'And why is that?'

'Because he was a jumped up, self-important little git in school and he's a jumped up, self-important little git in the Ministry.'

'Bravo Harry. And would anyone else, seeing that pot, automatically associate it with the Ministry?'

'Well, no, I mean, it's just a Prefect Badge.'

'And what would a Hogwarts school badge have to do with how you feel about the Ministry as a whole. The association is yours and yours alone. That's what I meant by how individual a Safe Space must be. And I hope you realised how many layers there were before you ever got to the information.'

'Um, the wards, Mrs Weasley, finding the right room, finding the right object…'

'And then finding the actual information, which even then you would have to sift through. And that's only if they know you well enough to guess. A Legilimens who doesn't know you that well might end up having to search the entire Burrow. You can see why it would take a lot of work.'

'So wherever I chose for a Safe Space I'd have to fill it with all the furniture and bits and pieces and then, I dunno, _tie _my thought to the stuff?

'That's it yes.'

'You weren't kidding when you said it was going to be a lot of work.'

Lupin smiled. 'No I wasn't, But Harry, this _is_ necessary – we can't afford to leave the Dark Lord with uncontrolled access to your mind.'

'I know, I know. So what'll my Safe Space be?'

'That, Harry, is up to you. I think we've done enough for today – it appears I've taken up most of your free time as it is. I want you to consider what your Safe Space should be, what its natural defences are and where you might hide things in it. We'll discuss it next time.'

'When'll that be?'

The werewolf stood up and stretched. 'I'm afraid I'm not exactly sure. My life has become a little more hectic than I'm used to just recently. I'll try to make it soon.'

'Alright. See you later Remus.'

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Harry looked at his watch and decided to just head straight for the Great Hall. They'd be serving up shortly anyway and it was easier than trying to track Ron or Hermione down. The Hall was already starting to fill up as he arrived so he made his way over to the Gryffindor table and sat down, thinking about Occlumency.

It was strange to think that he was actually looking forward to his next lesson. He'd spent a year hating even the thought of Occlumency butt Remus made it all sound so interesting that he was actually looking forward to getting started.

He snorted, funny how removing Professor Snape made things so much better.

His amusement faded as he thought about that a bit further. Out of the two Legilimens why hadn't Dumbledore asked Remus from the start? What had possessed the Headmaster to pass over a teacher he liked and respected and send him to one who hated his guts? _Why?_ If they'd only gone to Remus sooner then maybe Sirius would still be alive.

Something suddenly jumped on his feet and he peered under the tablecloth to see Orion tangled up in his shoelaces. The puppy wagged his tail enthusiastically and stuck a damp nose up his trouser leg. Harry had to laugh.

Ron dumped an armload of books on the table and dropped into the seat beside Harry.

'I don't know how you carry all those things Hermione, I really don't.'

Hermione rolled her eyes as she took her seat. 'How did it go Harry?' she asked anxiously.

'Really good,' he said. 'I'll tell you later. How was Arithmancy?'

Hermione didn't need much prompting to rhapsodise about her lesson and Harry listened with half an ear as he ate and flicked peas across the table at Ron. He started to describe Remus' lesson as they headed towards the Common Room.

'Wicked,' said Ron as he finished explaining.

'It does sound like you're taking it a lot more seriously,' Hermione said approvingly. 'Are you still doing your mind-clearing exercises?'

'_Yes_ Hermione.'

'Well good. I hope you're going to keep up with it this time Harry – it's not all going to be easy you know.'

'I _know_, Hermione, I'm not thick! I know how important this is.'

She patted his arm. 'I know you do. And I'm glad it's going better for you, it's just, it's going to be a lot of work. Have you thought about what your Safe Space should be?'

They sat in front of the fire in the Common Room discussing it for what seemed like hours. Ron was quite keen on the idea of a Quidditch Pitch while Hermione thought that if it was somewhere Muggle it would confuse any wizard looking through his mind.

Harry reminded her that Voldemort had been brought up in a Muggle orphanage. She sniffed. 'It's very different now, technology's moved on a lot since then – I mean, they didn't even have microwaves.'

'What's a microwave?'

'Not now Ron.'

All the same, the feeling was growing in Harry that there was only one place he _could_ pick. He couldn't imagine anywhere he'd spent time with the Dursleys as a Safe Space, and while he had felt safe at the Burrow he'd only ever been there as a guest, he didn't have the same connection to it that Ron had.

Grimmauld Place wasn't even an option and where else had he even spent any great deal of time? The more he thought about it the more sense it made. What place was more familiar to him? What other place had more protection? No where. It had to be Hogwarts.

As he lay in bed, his mind kept turning over the possibilities. With the castle as his safe space there would be no end of hiding places for his thoughts, any Legilimnes would have their work cut out searching through it for specific information. It could be anywhere – at the bottom of the lake, in an empty classroom, in a secret passage or on the top of a tower – where would you even start to look?

And the protections! The wards, the teachers, the ghosts, the headmaster, Mrs Norris, Filch, Snape even! You wouldn't be able to creep around a mind dungeon without a mind Snape showing up. The thought appealed to Harry, that Snapes irritating ability to show up the moment you even thought about getting up to something would actually come in useful inside his head.

He snorted. It was about the _only_ useful thing Snape had done so far as Occlumency was concerned.

He tossed the blankets back, startling Orion who was laid across the foot of the bed, and causing Ron to snort in his sleep. For a moment he considered waking him up but decided that right now he wanted to be alone, to think.

He glanced at the door to the dormitory and in moments was covered by the invisibility cloak and on his way out of Gryffindor Tower, Orion at his heels.

Harry had always enjoyed the castle at night when it was dark and peaceful. Orion was surprisingly good company, happy to trot alongside him down twisting corridors and up flights of stairs. He found himself talking to the Grim puppy as they wandered, treating him to a guided tour of the areas they passed and his thoughts on their potential as Occlumency aids.

It was oddly relaxing, to walk through the silent school so late, no particular destination in mind. The only moment of excitement came when he had to grab Orion's collar to stop him chasing Mrs Norris down a 6th floor corridor. Eventually they found themselves outside the entrance to the Room of Requirement.

The trolls in the picture of Barnabus the Barmy were fast asleep against the ballet bar, cuddling their clubs like knobbly teddy bears. Barnabus the Barmy himself was either asleep or unconscious on the floor of the painting so there was no one to notice as Harry and Orion passed by the blank bit of wall opposite.

'You'll probably end up in here quite a lot since we're starting the DA up again,' Harry told him.

The puppy looked at the wall and then back at the blank spot where an invisible Harry was standing. He had to wonder if Orion knew where he was through scent or something or if the pup could actually see through the cloak, since it certainly _seemed _as if Orion was looking at him. He resolved to investigate it further the next time he had the chance.

They walked past the wall again. 'You just have to concentrate on what you need and the room will appear. I don't know if it work for you – next time you're hungry you could try walking past and seeing if a doggie-door appears.' He laughed. 'And now I know I need some sleep, my sense of humour's getting weirder.'

He turned to head back to the dormitory but as they passed the wall for the third time a brass handle appeared, followed by a wooden door. They paused.

'I wasn't thinking of anything – were you?'

Orion didn't answer, busy sniffing at the door.

'Well, I guess we might as well see what's inside.'

Orion wagged his tail happily and Harry reached out to turn the handle, then they stepped inside.

It looked like a deserted classroom, with the dark shapes of desks and chairs pushed haphazardly against the walls but there was something familiar about it. Harry felt the hair on the back of his neck prickle as they stepped forward, footsteps echoing on the flagstone flooring.

High on the wall to his left was a small window which was letting in the moonlight to fall on a shrouded shape near the back of the room.

Harry paused in front of the shape, which was nearly as high as the ceiling and again felt that prickle of recognition. Taking a deep breath he reached for the heavy fabric and pulled.

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As I said at the end of the last chapter this is the end of the first week, where I concentrated on the new lessons and things. It's next chapter when things are **really** going to get going.

_Next chapter should see a whole lot more action and much more from Zabini who really starts playing a part from here on in. _

_If you're wondering exactly what Harry's standing in front of you'll find that out then too, though if you re-read the books you should find a very similar description of a place which will give you a very big hint on what it is. _

_I've already started writing the next chapter so it all depends on how quickly I can squeeze everything in and how fast I can get it typed up. You're only getting this chapter now because I've been off work and so able to get to the library more often._

_Anyway, many thanks to those who've read and those who've reviewed – I'm glad everyone likes my Grims and the Trelawney scene and the new lessons. You've all been marvellous! See you all next time. _

_**Unclear Destiny** – much, much more Blaise, I promise. And I'll see what I can do about Will, wouldn't want to disappoint a fangirl!_

_**Zarz** – glad you liked the Grims. Thanks for reminding me about the book, yes it will have a part to play._

_**Jamie46** – thank you! Sometimes I have to zoom through them myself but hopefully the next chapter'll be up quick enough you won't have to. Glad I could make you laugh._

_**Kittydemon18** – next chapter, there should be a confrontation coming up and that's when Harry's going to start taking command._

_**The Forgotten Elves** – oops. One of these days I'm going to go through and beta this thing thoroughly. If you spot any major errors though please point them out!_

_**Frequency Queen** – you'll find out next chapter! Blaise is planning to ask him about it._


	18. The faces in the mirror

_Hello again. I'm very aware that this has been a **very** long stretch between chapters but I've had other priorities just lately. If anyone watches the news my employer has been on it recently when they announced they were closing a lot of their sites and moving the work elsewhere, including India. __So me and my Mum, who works for the same company, are both being made redundant. So a lot of my spare time has been taken up with job-hunting and such._

_So, looking at the comments on my reviews, I decided to just post this chapter as it was, without waiting to write more plot into it. God knows when you'd have seen it then. I swear there is no way on earth I can escape from putting lots of plot in the next chapter though! _

_So profuse apologies for taking so long & enjoy._

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It was a magnificent mirror, with an ornate gold frame and two clawed feet. There was a familiar inscription carved around the top: 'Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.'

'The Mirror of Erised.' He paused, wondering how it had come to be in the Room of Requirement, and remembering what Dumbledore had said the last time he had taken his Invisibility Cloak to sneak a look at it. 'The Mirror will be moved to a new location tomorrow, Harry, and I ask you not to go looking for it again. If you ever _do_ run across it, you will be prepared.'

'Almost as if he knew what would happen,' he said softly, running a hand over the carving. 'Wonder if he saw us being here tonight?'

Orion whined and Harry looked down at him.

'Well I definitely wasn't thinking about the mirror, and somehow I doubt you were thinking about it so why is it here? Why now?'

He was torn. If he stepped in front of it he could see his family again but he still remembered how it had bespelled him in his first year. 'Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible,' he murmured, repeating Dumbledore's warning.

Orion whined again and he bent to pick the puppy up.

'I don't even know if it's the real mirror,' he told him. 'But this is the Room of Requirement so somehow, for some reason, I must _need_ to see it.' The puppy nudged him under the chin and turned to look at the mirror. Harry straightened his shoulders and stepped towards it. 'We might as well find out why.'

There he was, in the mirror, a little taller than he had been the last time he'd stood before it, with a grey Grim pup in his arms. And there to his right was his mother, dark red hair spilling down her back and green eyes soft as they looked at him. 'Hi Mum,' he whispered.

Stood beside her, one arm around her waist was James Potter, hair still as unruly as his and looking a little sheepishly at his son. Harry looked back at him. 'You were a bit of a prat you know Dad,' he told the figure in the mirror, who looked even more sheepish. 'But I guess you grew out of it. Otherwise Mum would never've married you.'

Lily Potter smiled and ruffled his hair, and Harry wished with all his heart that he could feel it and not just see it. He looked down and stroked Orion until he felt a bit more in control.

'I guess everyone's a bit of a prat sometimes,' he told them. 'I know I am.' James laughed, a wide smile on his face. Suddenly he turned to look at something beyond the mirror frame and grinned.

Harry turned slightly as his father made a beckoning gesture to whoever was lurking just out of sight and it was like a sudden blow, driving all the air out of him. He turned white. 'Sirius?' he croaked.

His godfather looked healthier and happier than Harry had ever seen him. No longer a starving convict, or the haunted prisoner of his own unhappy memories, _this_ Sirius was the man his godfather _should_ have been.

This Sirius was laughing as he caught James Potter in a headlock and rubbed his knuckles in the messy black hair, knocking his glasses askew. This Sirius was grinning broadly as he winked at Lily Potter over her husband's head.

Lily whacked him gently on the back of the head and directed his attention towards where Harry stood frozen outside the mirror. For a moment time stood suspended as they stared at each other, before James Potter wriggled out of the headlock and gave his best friend a shove towards his son. Harry stepped closer, until he was almost touching the mirror.

The look in Sirius's eyes was hard to describe. Love, yes, and pride, and maybe just a touch of regret.

'I miss you,' Harry told him simply.

James came to stand beside him and draped an arm over Sirius's shoulder. Lily came with him, to slide an arm around James waist and lean into her husband. She reached a hand out to touch his face and Harry realised he was crying, tears streaming down his cheeks. Orion wriggled in his arms and a rough tongue began to wipe them away.

Sirius looked down, as if noticing the Grim for the first time and he laughed, reaching out to pet the puppy. Harry wiped his eyes on the corner of his cloak. 'This is Orion,' he told him.

He looked at the picture they made in the mirror, his godfather, father and mother, all smiling and happy. His eyes met Sirius's again.

'I guess, wherever you are, you're with them now and you're happy,' he told the image. 'But you're gone and it hurts and there's nothing I can do about it. You're not coming back, and I'm just going to have to learn to live with that fact. But I'm going to miss you.'

It felt like he was letting go of a weight he hadn't even realised had been pressing down on his shoulders as he continued to speak.

'I'm not going to stop missing you, and wishing I hadn't been so stupid, that somehow it all turned out all right. I can't. But I'm going to make you proud of me. I'm going to fight Voldemort and I'm going to bring him down and maybe, someday, when it's all over, maybe we can be together than.'

His eyes met the Mirror Harry's and the image nodded. It felt like a solemn promise.

He looked back at the other images and was warmed by the pride already in their eyes. Mirror Sirius reached out, as if he was trying to reach _through_ the glass to Harry and Harry's hand rose to meet his, only to be blocked by the cold glass. They stood that way, eyes locked; hands separated by the glass for a long moment before Harry dropped his arm and cuddled Orion closer.

'It does not do to dwell on dreams,' he whispered brokenly. He sighed, and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand as he looked up at the mirror one last time.

'I love you,' he told them. Sirius nodded, and his parents held each other tighter as they waved him goodbye.

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Harry woke late on Saturday morning, surprisingly well rested considering his nocturnal activities. Orion was curled up at the foot of the bed. He felt better, his head clearer than it had in weeks. His stomach growled and he nudged the puppy with his foot. Orion looked up and yawned. 'Time to get up,' he told him.

Together they padded downstairs where he could hear that Ron and Hermione were already up and already arguing.

'All I'm saying, Hermione, is that it doesn't all have to be done right this second!'

'Perhaps if you sat and got on with it a bit earlier, _Ronald_, you wouldn't rush around like a headless chicken the night before its due trying to copy my notes!'

It was an old and familiar argument and Harry was smiling as he joined them. Ron swept an arm out to indicate the piles of books and parchment on the table in front of the couch.

'This is nearly as bad as the OWL's this is, and it's only the first week! If you keep this up Hermione your head's going to explode!'

She snorted at him.

'What're you working on?' Harry asked, picking up a star chart.

'I'm plotting the ascendancy of Venus,' she replied. 'We're starting Fertility Rituals soon.'

'_Fertility Rituals_,' Ron choked, staring at her. 'What do you need a _Fertility_ Ritual for?'

She looked at him and turned bright red.

'It's not for _me_, Ron! It's for the greenhouses, the plants – oh my goodness.' She covered her flaming face with her hands and started muttering to herself.

Harry looked from one friend to another. Ron was also turning pink. He decided to change the subject. 'So, anyone up for a trip to Hogsmeade?'

Hermione categorically refused to move until she had finished plotting Venus so Harry decided to start on the essay Snape had assigned them for Monday.

'Bloody bastard,' Ron muttered. 'Everyone else give us reading but that slimy git wants a bloody essay.'

Yeah, well, at least you don't have detention with him.'

20 minutes later, and Hermione decided she was done, at least for now, since Harry had made a point of mentioning his lack of food to prevent her cross-referencing the chart with the moon phases and double checking the translations on her Runes.

'All right, all right!' she exclaimed. 'Boys! I suppose it can wait a little while. And if we go into Hogsmeade I can pop into Empousai's for the anointing oils and some candles.'

Harry put down the copy of 'When Wizards Go Bad – Sensational Trials of the 20th Century' he'd been making notes from. 'Well I'm ready when you are.'

Ron was already packing up. 'Get a move on then, we can stop by the kitchens before we go. I'm starving.'

They were in luck, as neither Dobby nor Winky were in the kitchens, though that didn't prevent Hermione mentioning SPEW. Harry decided to change the subject again before she really got started.

'Has anyone seen Malfoy lately?'

'Funnily enough mate I try my best _not_ to notice the little ferret. Why?'

'No, he's right,' Hermione said thoughtfully. 'I don't think I've seen him since Potions.'

'So what?'

'_So_, if he isn't prancing around insulting everyone who isn't pure-blood where is he? And what's he up to?'

'Trying to think of better insults than Potty, Weasel and Mudblood? Plotting Harry's downfall? Writing love-letters to the Dark Lord? Who cares anyway?'

'I don't think he's in the Hospital Wing, we'd have heard if he was.'

'Why're you wasting your time thinking about Malfoy anyway Harry?'

'Ah. Just, you know, wondering if the little sneaks, uh, plotting some new way to make my life miserable,' he ventured. He could see Hermione wasn't buying the explanation.

'Harry,' she said sternly. 'What have you done?'

'Nothing!'

She just looked at him. He rubbed his scar absently. 'Oh all right! I, uh, slipped this thing Fred and George gave me into his cauldron and I haven't seen him since.'

'Well what was it?'

'I don't know.'

'You _don't know!_ Harry, you slipped one of the twin's concoctions into Malfoy's cauldron and you don't even know what it does?'

'Wicked!'

'Shut _up_ Ron.'

'Well it is,' Ron insisted stubbornly. 'I mean, come on Hermione, they won't have poisoned him or anything.'

'And what if it's one of their experiments?' she asked. 'If they decided to just 'test' one of their products on Malfoy?'

'Oh.'

'Yes _oh_!' she snapped. 'Harry, you could get into serious trouble for this. And you got Parkinson too.'

Truthfully, Harry had begun to feel a little nervous about what might have happened to Malfoy. It would've been alright if they'd only seen the results, or even heard rumours but Hermione had a point – he wouldn't put it past the twins to slip Malfoy something they hadn't worked out properly, just for a laugh.

'Well there's nothing he can do about it now, is there,' Ron pointed out.

Hermione looked worried. 'I'll have a word with Lavender when we get back, see if she's heard anything.'

'Lavender? Why would she know anything about Malfoy?'

'Honestly Ron, Lavenders the biggest gossip in Gryffindor. If she hasn't heard anything then we'll have to report it to someone.'

'But that'll get Harry in trouble.'

'Well maybe Harry shouldn't be dropping strange bundles into other people's cauldrons when he doesn't know what they'll do.'

'And maybe the pair of you should speak _to _Harry instead of over him,' Harry put in, rather annoyed. 'Why don't you just send Pig out to the Twins and _ask_ them what it was? Then we'll know if it even needs reporting.'

There was a moment's silence then Ron clapped him on the shoulder. 'Great idea – I'll do it when we get back.'

The conversation, to Harry's great relief, turned to lighter topics as they continued down the toad to Hogsmeade with the Grims, and eventually turned to the D.A again.

'I've been looking over my notes from the meetings,' Hermione began. Harry and Ron looked at her in astonishment.

'You took _notes?_' Ron exclaimed.

'Hermione, it's not like I set you homework!' Harry added.

She ignored them both. 'And I was wondering what you've decided to start with?'

'The Patronus Charm again,' Harry replied. 'We were getting really close with everyone last year and I think it's important. Did you see the news in the Prophet?'

'The one about the unseasonable mists being a sign the Dementor's are breeding?'

'That's the one.'

'Urgh,' Ron put in. 'Dementor's breeding. That's an even worse mental image than Snape breeding.'

The others shuddered in agreement.

'So definitely the Patronus. What else?'

'Well, we'll probably need to do a review, make sure everyone remembers last years spells…'

Hermione nodded.

'Then there's the spells we found in the Black Library…'

Ron's eyes lit up and he nodded enthusiastically. There had been some very interesting spells in the books at Grimmauld Place.

'And I've been looking through that book Lupin gave me….'

'The Marauders one?'

'Yeah, and there's some _really_ useful stuff in there.'

Hermione looked dubious. 'I thought that was a guide to magical mischief making?'

'Well it is, but it's got some good stuff in there, like this spell to stop people listening in when you're planning something – we could've used _that_ at the Hogs Head!'

'I suppose so,' she allowed.

'And you know that Bat Bogey hex Ginny's so fond of?'

'Yeah?'

'Did you know Sirius invented it?'

'He _didn't_.'

'He did. Sixth year. It's all in the book.'

'Cool.'

They rounded the corner into Hogsmeade and Hermione immediately headed for Empousai's, a large white building with Greek columns that Harry had occasionally passed but never entered. It smelt a bit like the Divinations classroom, all incense and candles, and there were always groups of girls in it. He and Ron decided to wait outside.

From there they hit the Apothecary, where the two Grims nearly upset a barrel full of rat spleens and Harry stocked up on more Pixie Dust. They stopped by Zonkos and Honeydukes, where Orion found a Fizzing Whizbee on the floor and spent the next half hour hovering 6 inches above the ground.

Shopping done, they headed for the Three Broomsticks, since Ron reminded Harry he owed him a drink. Since it wasn't a Hogsmeade weekend the pub wasn't as packed as it usually was and they found a table quite close to the bar.

Ron, to no ones surprise, volunteered to fetch the drinks and a plate of chips to share. In Harry's opinion the chips at the Three Broomsticks were even better than those at Hogwarts, which was saying something.

Hermione nudged him in the side with her elbow as he sat back, and lowered her voice. 'Look over there, isn't that Neville?'

Harry looked into a shadowy corner booth, to see Neville sat on his own with Mandrake. He was just about to call across to him when Neville leaned down to pat the Grim and Harry saw who was sat beside him.

'Is that Hannah?'

'What you looking at?' asked Ron as he set down the drinks and popped a chip in his mouth.

'Neville,' Harry grinned. 'And Hannah.'

Neville's got a _girlfriend?_'

'Oh don't sound so surprised Ron, Neville's a really nice boy and he's really shot up the past few years…'

'I'm tall,' Ron interjected.

'And since the Department of Mysteries he's never been more interesting or more fanciable.'

'I was at the Department of Mysteries.'

'Hannah's not the only person to have noticed you know.'

Ron eyed Hermione in what looked like alarm. 'Who else has noticed?' She rolled her eyes at him.

'Aww, that's so sweet,' she sighed. The boys turned to see Neville helping Hannah out of her seat. He was a little bit pink as they walked out of the pub hand in hand. Harry was glad to see his friend was happy but sincerely hoped he hadn't looked that sappy when he was going out with Cho.

Looking back on it he figured he had probably just looked panicked, which really wasn't any better.

The WWN was on in the background, playing the latest releases from Nightstalker and the Weird Sisters and Harry relaxed, enjoying the music, at least until the news came on.

He listened in mounting anger as the newsreader advised that Umbridge would be staying on at the Ministry though the post of Inquisitor would be scrapped, and that an opinion poll was showing growing support for 'not undermining the Ministry during these dark times.'

'Minister Fudge,' the newsreader continued, 'had this to say: "I am gratified to hear that the British Wizarding Public have acknowledged that the instability within the Ministry that would be caused by a change of power could be to no ones benefit but the D-Dark Lord. I am determined to lead us through these dark times and can assure you that progress has already been made against You-Know-Who's forces.

I can announce that just last night Aurors captured one Stanley Shunpike, who was overheard discussing the Death Eaters plans in the Leaky Cauldron. We hope to use information gained from him to move against other such dangerous individuals."'

'I don't bloody _believe_ this,' Harry ground out. 'What the hell is the Ministry thinking? That bloody idiot manages to _lose_ Malfoy and a load of other top Death Eaters but he arrests Stan Shunpike so suddenly he's our best hope?'

'Isn't Shunpike him off the Knight Bus? The one who told all those Veela's he was going to be the next Minister?'

'Yeah, that's him. He's no more a Death Eater than I am! This is Sirius all over again! Who cares if we've got the wrong bloke so long as we've got someone!'

Harry's voice was rising and people in the pub were beginning to look round.

'Harry,' Hermione began.

'And Umbridge! That fat toad didn't even get a slap on the bloody wrist! The pair of them should've been kicked out of the Ministry week's ago!'

People were openly staring now but Harry didn't seem to notice. Ron and Hermione started tugging him towards the door.

'They should've been out on their arses over the summer but no, it's dragged on and on and now _nothing is flaming happening!_' His voice was rising with every word and Orion and Selene yapped in apparent agreement.

Hermione let go of his wrist and grabbed his face in both hands. He glared at her, chest heaving.

'Harry, I can fix this. I _promise_ you, I can fix this, but you have to stop shouting and come outside.'

He opened his mouth.

'Right now, Harry.'

He stomped out. Ron and Hermione hurried after him.

'Alright Hermione. How are you going to fix this?'

'Do you trust me Harry?'

'Of course he trusts you!'

'Of course I trust you! What sort of stupid question is that?'

'It isn't a stupid question at all. I knew something like this was going to happen…'

'You _knew_…how did you know that?'

'Because she knows _everything_, Harry. She _always_ knows everything. How _do_ you know everything Hermione?'

She rolled her eyes. 'I do not know _everything_, but I may be the only person in the school who pays attention in History of Magic.'

'Told you she was weird,' Ron whispered to Harry, startling a snort of laughter out of him.

Thank goodness, Hermione thought as Harry visibly relaxed. Ron might not be the smartest boy in the school but he was the only one who could read Harry well enough to calm him down like that.

'Something similar happened during Grindelwald's rise,' she explained. 'So I knew it was a possibility and made a few contingency plans, just in case.'

'I don't even remember covering Grindelwald,' Harry said.

'You wouldn't,' she replied dryly. 'You were asleep. The point is that Fudge has managed to hold onto power so far, despite the crisis, so the public are starting to wonder if maybe he should just stay on.'

'So how can you fix that?'

'Harry, you of all people should know how quickly public opinion can change. All it needs is the right push.' She smiled beatifically.

You know what Hermione,' Ron put in. 'You look a little bit scary when you do that.'

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Before Harry knew it he was stood in front of Snape's door, waiting to begin detention. The rest of the day seemed to have just vanished. They had walked back to Hogwarts & Pig had been dispatched to the Twins while Hedwig had been sent off as part of Hermione's mysterious plan.

'It's all arranged,' she had told them in the Owlery, as she tied a note to Hedwig's leg. 'You remember when we were in Diagon Alley and I stopped at the Post Office? Well let's just say Mum wasn't the only person I wrote to.'

'Rita Skeeter?' asked Harry, remembering their conversation after reading the Daily Prophet's reporting on Umbridge.

'Yes,' she smiled serenely. 'And a few others.'

'Brilliant,' Ron declared, because even though he and Harry didn't have all the details of what Hermione was up to yet, it was a recognised fact that Hermione's plans were usually pretty good.

Then it was to the Great Hall for some food and suddenly there he was, waiting for Snape. He briefly wondered why the ex-potions professor hadn't moved into the more usual Defence Against the Dark Arts office, rather than staying in the dungeons. Maybe it had something to do with being Head of Slytherin.

Or maybe the prat was just at home in the dank and disgusting dungeons.

The door was yanked open right on time and Snape glared down at him for a long moment, sneer firmly in place. Harry mentally sneered back. 'And I don't care if you did hear that,' he thought.

The vein in the professor's forehead didn't react so Harry was pretty sure he hadn't been listening in.

The office was the same as it had ever been, smelling of damp and dead things, with unpleasant bits of things floating in glass jars lining the walls. There was also a pile of dusty and cobwebbed boxes piled by a small table where Harry was plainly meant to sit.

He could just tell that this was going to be as much fun as answering Lockhart's mail.

'Mr Filch has been looking for someone to clear out these old files,' Snape said softly. 'They are records of other Hogwarts troublemakers and their punishments. Where the ink has grown faint or the cards have suffered damage from mice you are to copy them afresh and sort them into alphabetical order. _By hand_. You will not be permitted to use magic.'

Snape glared into his eyes and Harry immediately thought of a big, wet blanket of fog, right behind his eyeballs and covering his thoughts. Just in case. And then he mentally stuck his tongue out.

'I thought you could start,' said Snape, a singularly nasty smile on his thin lips, 'with boxes 1012 to 1056. You will find some familiar names in there to add interest to the task…'

He reached into the topmost box and withdrew a badly nibbled card with a flourish. 'James Potter and Sirius Black. Apprehended using an illegal hex on Bertram Aubrey. Aubrey's head twice the normal size. Double detention.'

Snape sneered. 'It must be such a comfort to think that such a record of their achievement remains now that they are both gone.' He smirked and Harry badly wanted to punch his yellowing teeth in and ram them down his throat.

He pushed down the familiar boiling rage in the pit of his stomach and forced himself to think of nothing but thick, wet fog. He had no intention of letting Snape see how much he was getting to him. Stomping across to the boxes he sat down and began.

It was, as he had anticipated, useless, boring work, punctuated (as Snape had clearly planned) with the regular jolt in the stomach that came from reading his fathers or godfathers names, occasionally accompanied by those of Remus Lupin or Peter Pettigrew.

What Snape probably hadn't anticipated was that, after the first few hours of mind-numbing boredom, the hot shame that Harry had felt after watching the memory of his father in his pensieve started to fade under the sense of righteous indignation.

Maybe his Dad had no right to treat Snape the way he had but Snape didn't have any excuse for the way he insisted on treating Harry either. It was starting to seem like revenge in advance.

Last time he'd seen his Dad abusing Snape he hadn't done anything to deserve it and he'd been ashamed his dad was such a prat. It soothed the uneasy feeling in his stomach to read that Snape was far from an innocent victim.

Harry didn't think Snape had thought this punishment through thoroughly otherwise he'd have removed the cards that said things like: 'Severus Snape, apprehended after putting Silver Nitrate in the Prefects Bathroom. 2 Weeks detention.'

After that, reading things like 'James Potter & Sirius Black. Apprehended after hanging Severus Snape from the clock tower by his underwear,' merely roused a certain sense of vicious satisfaction.

He glanced over at the bat like figure seemingly absorbed in a pile of marking.

Yeah alright, Harry thought, massaging his aching wrist. My Dad may've been a right prat at school, and big-headed and arrogant and all the rest. But at least he grew out of it. And that's more than you can say isn't it Snape?

So what if his Dad wasn't perfect. So what? Nobody's perfect. If nothing else his little visit to the Mirror of Erised had helped him come to terms with that.

Sighing, Harry turned back to the piles of cards. Eventually he started to realise that there were some very interesting sounding spells described in connection with the Marauders. Even if they never came out and mentioned the spells by name Harry decided to take a much closer look at the Marauders book when he had the chance.

Finally Snape, who had not spoken since setting Harry his task, allowed him to put down his pen.

'Bear in mind, Potter, one wrong move and you'll be back here. I have plenty of boxes; we can keep this going right up until the blessed moment you leave Hogwarts for good. _I_ am the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher now, and you and your little club will be learning what _I_ deem necessary.

Now that I am in charge you can consider your little teaching career over. Oh and Potter, I'll be keeping an eye on you. Now go.'

Harry went

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He stormed into the library, causing Madam Pince and a number of seventh year Ravenclaws to glare at him. He ignored them as he stomped over to a table near the History of Magic section, which was almost always quiet, and where Ron and Hermione were sat.

He threw himself into a chair.

'Bad time mate?' Ron asked sympathetically.

'That _prick_, he doesn't want the DA starting again – _threatened _me! – said he could keep me in detention till I left school,' he growled low in his throat.

'You what?'

'He was all "I am the DADA teacher now Potter," "I'll be keeping an eye on you Potter," "Your little teaching career is over now, Potter.'

Madam Pince kept scowling over at them for daring to talk in her library so Hermione casually stood, loaded the boys arms with books and headed into the stacks. She paused by a statue of Quasim the Queasy, the great sea-faring wizard and turned.

'Then we have a bit of a problem,' she said matter-of-factly.

'Just the one?'

'He's going to be watching the Room of Requirement.'

'Oh bloody hell, that's all we need!'

'Shush, Harry, let me think.'

'Does he even know we were using the Room of Requirement?'

'Can we really take that chance? Umbridge was able to find us there. And even if we make it safe to be inside Snape could just as easily wait in the corridor until we come out.'

'Well where else are we going to go?'

'Well, we're sixth years now. Couldn't we do it in Hogsmeade?'

'And what about the Fifth Years?'

'Oh yeah. What about the Shrieking Shack?'

'Too small.'

'And how many people are going to want to go there anyway? We might know it's not haunted but are they really going to believe us?'

There was silence for a moment, broken by the rustling of paper wings. They looked around, and Harry snatched the paper owl from the air above Hermione's head and opened it.

It read: _'Granger, surely **you** must have the intelligence to know not to discuss your secret plans in a public place?'_

Hermione blushed and looked around wide eyed. 'Someone's listening!'

They peered around the shadowy stacks. Ron even pulled out a few books to peer through to the other aisles but there was no one near.

There was another flutter of papery wings. Harry snatched the Phoenix as it swooped towards him. 'Try and see where they're coming from,' he hissed.

'_Potter, think! I know it's difficult but try your best. You need a place** no one else can go**, a very **secret** place, one that **only you can open** – have I given you enough clues yet?'_

'Bit insulting, whoever they are,' put in Ron.

Harry was staring at the note. It tickled something at the back of his mind.

'No one else can go, secret, only I can open,' he repeated. Then his eyes widened. 'The _Chamber of Secrets!_ You can't be serious!'

Ron and Hermione looked back at him, equally wide-eyed. There was a moment's stillness, before papery wings once again interrupted the quiet. This time it was clearly a Raven.

'_Potter, think! A chamber so secret it was undiscovered for hundreds of years, a chamber that can only be opened by one person in this school – you! – how much more secure do you want? And rumour has it it's more than large enough for your little group.'_

'Who are you?' Harry demanded. 'And where are you?'

A paper hawk dive-bombed him.

'_If you really want to know, meet me tomorrow morning, after breakfast, in the History of Magic classroom. We'll talk then.'_

'Why not talk now? Why are you hiding?'

He was answered by silence.

The three of them looked around but nothing seemed out of place. They looked at each other.

'Maybe we should head back to the Common Room,' Hermione suggested. 'And talk this over _without_ eavesdroppers.'

They walked out of the stacks warily, constantly glancing behind them. Nothing stirred. Their listener waited patiently, and just as he expected Weasley leapt back into the stacks, ready to go 'Aha!' not two minutes later. The poor boy looked terribly disappointed.

He waited until he was certain they had left for good.

'Gryffindors,' he sighed. '_So_ predictable.'

A red velvet curtain rustled as Blaize Zabini leapt athletically down from the high windowsill, walked behind the bookcase (no sense in being careless after all) and went to find Nott.

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_Well hopefully you all enjoyed that and will be sticking around for the next chapter. As always, let me know what you thought. _


	19. A Valuable Ally

_Hello again. I now have my own computer so I'm hoping further updates will be a bit quicker now. Real life still very much getting in the way as I haven't found a new job yet but I'll do my best. Decided to post what I've got up to this point so you don't have to wait any longer – hope you enjoy._

_And many thanks for all the reviews, love you all to bits._

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**A Valuable Ally**

'It's got to be Malfoy,' Ron announced at breakfast.

'You what?'

'Malfoy. In the Library. With the notes.'

'Sounds like a twisted game of Cluedo,' Hermione muttered.

Ron stared at her blankly. 'Come on Hermione. Who else calls him Potter?'

'All the Slytherins and anyone else who's annoyed at me,' Harry reminded him.

'And sends him little paper birdies? You know what Harry, sometimes I think Malfoy's got a thing for you.'

Harry choked on his omelette and stared at him.

'Well he's bloody well obsessed with you, he follows you around and what normal guy does origami? He's like some obsessive little stalker or something.'

'No, _he's_ my obsessive little stalker, remember,' Harry said, pointing down the table to Colin, who waved back with a big grin. 'And it wasn't Malfoy with the notes.'

'How can you be so sure?'

'Because he wasn't insulting enough. Not one comment on Hermione's blood or your family, no nasty little nicknames – it wasn't Malfoy. Besides he'd be more likely to come out and lord it over us that he'd heard. He'd threaten to tell not ask for a meeting.'

'Could be a trap. He could've run off to Snape and he'll be waiting in the classroom for us. It'll be the Wizards Duel all over again.'

'Yeah, well, we're not little first years anymore. And we won't just go walking into it this time. We'll take the map, and the cloak. And a couple of things from your brothers.'

Ron brightened. 'So who do you reckon it is then?' he asked as they got up and left the table. 'If it isn't Malfoy?'

'It's got to be a Slytherin. We haven't annoyed anyone else so much they wouldn't use our names.'

'At least not yet,' Hermione said with a small smile.

'Yeah, its early days yet mate. There's still time!' Ron grinned and Harry grinned back.

'I think it's likely it's someone in our year,' put in Hermione. 'They sounded too familiar with all of us to not be.'

'The only problem with that Hermione, is that we're pretty well known. Most of the _school's_ pretty familiar with us!'

'I know, but how many Slytherins know us that well? They sounded like they knew us in a day-to-day sense. That means it has to be someone in our year.'

'Well, we've already ruled out Malfoy, and its way too intelligent to be Crabbe or Goyle.'

'Or Bulstrode.'

'So who was it?'

'I think we can rule out Parkinson, she would've been a lot bitchier.'

'Hermione!'

'Well, she would be.'

So that leaves Zabini, Nott, and those girls who hang around with Parkinson.'

'Davis and Greengrass,' Hermione put in.

'I don't know anything about any of them,' Ron said. 'Though Zabini's been, I dunno, more _around_ lately? Remember the train?'

'Nott's Dad's a Death Eater.' Harry said. 'Or was, I guess.'

'I don't know enough about the girls to guess but they've always seemed happy enough to go along with Parkinson.'

'So in other words we still don't know.'

'But we soon will,' Harry promised, patting the pocket that held the Marauders Map. 'And whoever they are, we've got a few tricks up our sleeves if they're planning anything.'

They slowed as they reached the History of Magic corridor and Harry pulled out the map.

'Zabini,' he announced. '_And_ Nott. No one else close.'

'Think they're planning anything?'

'Soon find out.' Harry removed the Wandering Eye from his pocket and tapped it with his wand before setting it on the floor. It rolled silently around the doorframe and into the room.

It was a bit disorientating, having your vision move when you were standing still, but at least it showed that the two Slytherins were sat on a desk near the back of the classroom and giving no sign that they were about to spring a trap. The Eye rolled closer and Harry noticed that both of them had their wands close to hand.

'Ron, the Ears,' he whispered.

Ron took out a pair of Extendable Ears and listened intently for a moment. 'I think they're talking about Arithmancy,' he said, sounding slightly disappointed.

'Alright, everyone under the cloak,' said Harry as he shook it out. Making sure they were all covered they stared to sidle into the room.

Nott and Zabini _were_ in fact, discussing Arithmancy. Harry couldn't understand a word they were saying.

'So do you really think the Gryffindors will show?' Nott asked suddenly.

'We _are_ talking about Potter and his friends, Theo. They'll show.'

Nott grunted and Zabini checked his watch.

'In fact, they should be here any moment. Weasley must've had enough time to finish his breakfast by now.'

'Do you really think they're going to listen?'

'Oh they'll _listen_,' Zabini drawled. 'Whether or not they'll _believe_ me is another matter.'

Harry decided they'd heard enough and whipped off the cloak, startling Nott, who swore viciously. Zabini simply raised an eyebrow at them.

'Ah, you made it,' he said urbanely. 'Please, take a seat.' He waived a languid hand at the desks in front of him. Hermione put out a hand to stop them and cast a quick charm over the area.

'No spells,' she announced.

Zabini gave her an almost respectful nod. 'Been reading ahead in Enchantment, Granger?'

She gave him a sharp look, reminiscent of Professor McGonagall. 'Yes. And so must you if you recognised it.'

'Indeed,' he smiled. 'Now do sit down, you too Theo, they're not going to bite.'

They lowered themselves onto the desks warily.

'So which of you sent the notes,' Hermione asked.

'That would be me,' Zabini replied.

'Why?'

'I wanted to get your attention.'

'Well, you've got it. So what do you want?'

'Ah Gryffindors, 'Zabini smiled at Nott. 'So wonderfully blunt.'

Harry held his impatience in check.

'Theo, the doors.'

Three wands were instantly trained on him.

Zabini, still sat on his desk, heaved a deep sigh. 'I would really rather not have this conversation become common knowledge. If you don't trust Theo to do it, perhaps Granger could shut the door and cast a Silencing Spell?'

She looked at Harry, who nodded, and made her way over to the doors. Nott sat back down and Harry and Ron both lowered their wands. Zabini waited until Hermione had rejoined them before he spoke.

'I have a proposition for you. I,' he glanced at Nott, who scowled but nodded slightly. Zabini smiled. '_We_ would like to join this little Defence Club of yours.'

'You what?' Ron exclaimed.

'You went to all this trouble just to ask that?' Hermione questioned.

Harry gave them an insincere smile. 'Your own Head of House has banned us from running that little Defence Club. Besides, we only started it because Umbridge was such a crap teacher – we shouldn't need it now, should we? Or are you saying Snape's not up to the job?'

'Oh, I'm not saying that Snape can't _teach_. What I'm saying is that if you disobeyed a High Inquisitor then I don't see why you'd hesitate over a mere Head of House.'

'And why would we trust you not to run off and tell Snape?'

'I wouldn't expect 'trust' Potter. I'd expect you to take precautions. Maybe Granger can charm you another parchment?'

'So sorry Zabini, we just don't have any openings for you.'

Zabini raised his hands and applauded sarcastically. 'Oh Bravo, Potter, that practically _dripped_ insincerity.'

'We're leaving,' Harry snapped, pushing up from the desk.

'I _told_ you he wouldn't listen,' Nott growled. 'Let the Dark Lord kill him for all I care. We don't need him.'

The Gryffindors paused on their way to the door and span around. Ron raised his wand but it flew from his hands. The Slytherins were on their feet, wands trained on the Gryffindors. Harry and Hermione raised their wands in return.

'I _told_ you it was some sort of trap,' grumbled Ron, rubbing at his wand hand.

All traces of the languid and relaxed Zabini were gone, replaced by a steely-eyed glare.

'It's not a trap, Weasley,' he snapped out. 'We're not planning on ratting you out to Snape, selling our story to the tabloids or whispering it in the Dark Lords ear. We're not here to spy, or spread rumours, or capture you and deliver you to the Death Eaters. We're not here to do any of what you're probably imagining. '

'Then why are you here,' Hermione demanded hotly. 'If you wanted a Defence Club so badly you could start your own. Why the DA? You must want _something_ out of it!'

Zabinis eyes never left Harrys. 'You're right. We don't just want the DA...'

'I _told_ you,' Ron began.

'We're offering an Alliance.'

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'Explain,' Harry rapped out.

'You're going to continue the DA one way or another, Potter, everyone in the school knows that. You're going to go up against the Dark Lord again too, everyone in the Wizarding _World_ knows that. We want in.'

'_You're_ planning to follow Harry?' Ron said in disbelief.

'No bloody way,' spat Nott. 'We don't _follow_.'

Zabini's eyes still hadn't left Harry's.

'We don't follow _anyone_ Potter. Not you, not Dumbledore and not the Dark Lord. But we _are_ offering to help.'

'At wand point,' Hermione said tartly.

'Well you weren't exactly listening when we were being reasonable now were you?'

'And why would we want your help? You were in the Inquisitorial Squad! And his Dad's a Death Eater!'

'Was,' Nott ground out. '_Was_ a Death Eater. You've met him Potter, I know you have. You think he was great father material? Think I want to hurt you because my darling daddy's croaked? Think again. He was a bastard, Potter. And I'm glad he's dead.'

Hermione gasped and Ron and Harry gaped at him.

'Ever wondered what it's like living with a Death Eater, Potter? It's hell. And I spent 17 years of my life in it. You want the Death Eaters dead? Fine by me. The Dark Lord dead? Great. But if you think you're going to get it with a couple of hexes and an Expelliarmus then you're the one who's going to end up dead.'

'It's really very simple,' Zabini said. 'We can help you defeat the Dark Lord or you can walk away. Your choice.'

Harry didn't know why but as he stared into Zabini's eyes his annoyance slowly faded. He lowered his wand slightly.

'All right, he said grudgingly. 'I'm listening.'

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The five of them warily lowered themselves back into their seats.

'Potter, no offence meant but its sheer luck that's gotten you this far against the Dark Lord. You're a Gryffindor, all the people you actually listen to are Gryffindors – the Dark Lord isn't.'

'Your point being?'

'The Dark Lord is a Slytherin, Potter. He thinks like a Slytherin - you don't. You need someone who understands the way his mind works, and you're not going to find that in a Ravenclaw or a Hufflepuff.'

'Why you?'

'Why not?'

'That's not an answer.'

Zabini sighed. 'Slytherins are demonised enough in this school, Potter. What do you thinks going to happen when you defeat someone who goes around calling himself the 'Heir of Slytherin,' especially with someone like Fudge in charge?'

Nott grunted. 'It's already started. You've seen the legislation on Werewolves and Vampires. Next there'll be a Slytherin Registry. Branded dangers to public security at 11.'

Hermione looked concerned. 'He has a point Harry. I mean, everyone always says it's the Slytherins that go dark. '

The Slytherins in question snorted.

'We're not the only ones who go Dark, Granger. We're just better publicised.'

'So you're what, joining us to prove that Slytherins can be light too?' Ron said scornfully.

Nott bared his teeth in something a little too fierce to be called a smile. 'Oh we're not _Light_, Weasley, not by a long shot.'

The tension level in the room rose and Harry's hand tightened on his wand. Zabini laid a hand on Notts arm in warning.

'Would you say that Professor Lupin is evil? Or Hagrid?'

'Of course not!'

'So you trust them then? Despite the fact that they're both Dark Creatures?'

The Gryffindors fell silent.

'Maybe you should trust Fudge instead. Or Umbridge. _They're_ not Dark Creatures. They aren't even Slytherins. Surely they must be light enough for you? No? Siding with the Light doesn't make you a good person, Potter, and Dark isn't necessarily evil.'

'We're Dark, and that isn't going to change. But why not take advantage of it?'

'What do you mean?'

Zabini leant forward. 'We can go where you can't, hear what you can't, get what you can't. We have the contacts, and the skills, and the knowledge that you don't. You may have brains and bravery and loyalty on your side but you don't have subtlety and you don't have cunning. And you're going to need them.'

Nott sneered at them. 'We're not trying to turn you to the Dark so don't try to turn us light and we'll get along...fine.'

'There's still the matter of trust,' Hermione said primly.

Zabini switched his attention to her. 'Look at it this way, Granger. I want in but it's up to you how far. If you don't trust me then don't tell me your secrets, it's that simple. If you don't let us in then we can't help you and none of us have gained anything out of this little meeting. If you let me in, keep your secrets and it turns out I'm not to be trusted then what have you lost? Nothing, but you'll still have had everything I can teach you so you'll at least have gotten something out of the deal. And if I can be trusted,' he paused. 'Well, you'll have a very valuable alliance on top of everything else. So what have you got to lose?'

It was Harrys turn to lean forward and catch the Slytherins attention. He hadn't grown up having to endure Uncle Vernon's long-winded tales of his triumphs in the world of drills to not notice what _hadn't_ been said.

'So what's in it for you? Personally? What do _you_ get out of it?'

Zabini smirked slightly. 'Well that really depends on whether or not you win this war, doesn't it? I'm hoping for a dead Dark Lord, recognition that all Slytherins are not inherently evil, power, the usual sort of things.'

'Revenge,' put in Nott, and Zabini nodded in agreement.

'Against who?' asked Ron.

'The Death Eaters, the Dark Lord...'

'For someone who claims to be Dark you've sure got it in for them.'

'They're not _Dark_,' spat Nott, fists clenching.

'You've fallen into the same trap most of the Wizarding World is in. The Ministry's too quick to label anything they don't agree with Dark. And if it's dark then it must be Evil, but the world just isn't that black and white. The Dark Lord? Definitely Evil. Death Eaters? Fairly Evil, most of them. Some of them are just stupid. The Dark Arts? They're just Dark.'

There was an uncomfortable silence.

'You mentioned power. What sort of power?'

'You win this Potter, and everyone who stood by you is going to be famous. And there is power in that. Power to make a few changes to the Wizarding World. I want that chance.'

Zabinis voice was fervent. Harry slowly nodded.

'Alright,' he said hesitantly. 'We'll give you a chance. There's a DA meeting tonight, you can come to that.'

'When and where?'

'Nine, in the Chamber of Secrets.'

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Ron exploded almost as soon as they left the room. 'Are you mad, Harry? What were you thinking?'

Harry waved him to silence until they were well clear of the room where the two Slytherins remained. Ron glowered.

'Hermione, there's no spells on us? Or any chance they're listening?'

She shook her head.

'Zabinis got a point Ron, we're not Slytherins and we don't think like Slytherins. And maybe if I hadn't been such a Gryffindor then Sirius wouldn't be dead.'

It was the first time since it happened that Harry had voluntarily brought up his godfathers name to them.

'Oh Harry,' Hermione said sympathetically. 'It wasn't your fault – you can't blame yourself.'

'If I hadn't decided to be all noble and protect Sirius I'd've opened his present. He _told_ me I could contact him with it but I thought it was too dangerous so I never even opened it. Just threw it inside my trunk and forgot about it. It was a 2-way mirror, Hermione! I could've used it instead of the fire, then I'd've _known_ he was ok, that the vision was wrong. And what did he think when I didn't use it? The last months of his life and I ignored him. He was stuck in that bloody place and I never...' his voice broke.

Hermione hugged him hard.

'Harry, mate, you don't know that,' Ron said gently, freckled face unusually serious. 'You spoke to him in the fire, he knew you cared. And you've forgotten about Kreacher. If he was smart enough to injure Buckbeak to get Sirius out of the way don't you reckon he'd've done _something_ with the mirror? He must've known about it, he was always there, sneaking and listening. And if you'd used the mirror and it was broken or he didn't answer what would you've done?'

Harry had never really thought about it like that before.

'I'd've rushed off to the Ministry again,' he said slowly.

Hermione hugged him even harder. 'You can't second-guess the past Harry.'

'But it was still the wrong choice! If I'd known it was just a trick then I'd never've gone!'

'And Voldemort would have the Prophecy.'

'What?'

'It had both your names on it Harry. He appeared in the Ministry _himself_, he could have just walked in and taken it. If we hadn't been there to fight them would anyone even have noticed?'

'They'd still be calling you a nutcase, mate. Fudge'd still be in Malfoys pocket, no one would believe Voldemort was back, or about who the Death Eaters are. You'd still be that crazy, attention-seeking show-off with the scar and the Ministry'd still be out to get you.'

'Dumbledore would still be in trouble for supporting you, Umbridge might still be Headmistress – we might even have been expelled by now!'

'You don't _know_ that.'

Ron took him by the shoulders and shook him gently. 'And neither do you mate. No one _knows_ what would've happened, not for sure. But it _could've_ happened.'

They continued walking down the corridor.

'And Merlin knows what was in that Prophecy but he wanted it pretty badly.'

'It must have been important considering the risks he was taking to get it. It's just a shame we didn't save it. It might have helped.'

'Well, we'll never know now.'

'Um, guys?'

Ron and Hermione turned to look at Harry, who had stopped dead. It was time, he decided, past time really. He should've told them before but it was just too raw, too much to even think about.

'Harry?' Hermione asked as she walked back to him.

He sighed. 'Um, well,' he ducked his head and coughed nervously. 'That's not...well,' he paused a moment, remembering the seemingly deserted library, and raised his wand.

'Muffliato!'

'What was that?' Hermione asked. 'I've never even heard of that spell.'

'It's, uh, to stop people eavesdropping. It's in the Marauder book.' Harry had to admit that despite all the work they'd done together over the summer he had rather jealously guarded that particular gift.

'Cool.' Ron sounded impressed. 'Can you teach me?'

'Of course I will, but that's not the point.'

'Then what is?'

'The Prophecy. It, well, it wasn't exactly lost.'

'What do you mean? You saw it smash. It was too noisy to hear it.'

Harry sighed deeply, steeling himself, and let out a shuddering breath. 'Trelawney made the prophecy...'

'_Trelawney!_'

'And she made it to Dumbledore.'

Silence.

'So the Headmaster...' Hermione almost whispered.

'Knows what the prophecy said,' Ron finished softly.

'And so do I.'

'You _what_?'

'But when – why?' Hermione spluttered.

'What does it _say_,' Ron demanded.

'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives. ..the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies.'

He watched the shock spread over his friends faces as comprehension sank in.

'Oh, Harry,' Hermione murmured, stricken.

Ron's face looked far older than his 16 years as he met his best friends' eyes. 'It's always you isn't it mate. So, is this the reason, with Zabini?'

'Part of it,' Harry admitted. 'Voldemort's going to keep coming until one of us is dead and I'm going to need every advantage I can get if it's not going to be me.'

'Well you've got us,' said Ron.

'And we'll be with you every step of the way,' Hermione added.

'It's going to be dangerous,' Harry warned.

'Since when has that ever stopped us,' Hermione said softly.

Ron struck a dramatic pose in the middle of the corridor.

'Danger? Ha! Danger is my middle name!'

'It's just so unfortunate you're first name's 'In,'' Hermione sighed.

'OY!'

Harry laughed. He'd been dreading telling them he was destined to either kill or be killed, dreading how they would react. The burden just didn't seem quite so heavy know that it was out.

'So, any other secrets you've been keeping from us? Anything else you just 'forgot' to mention,' Ron joked.

'Ah, well, now that you mention it...'

They turned wide eyes on him, visibly bracing themselves for whatever it was.

'Did I tell you Sirius gave me his motorbike?'

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_Would have continued but that seemed like a good place to stop & I didn't want to leave you waiting any longer. Let me know what you thought. __Next chapter has the actual DA meeting._

_Oh, and thanks to those reviewers who advised ways to make the __fic__ better & easier to read. You may have noticed I took some of that advice. You know who you are. :)_


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